2006 Shelling of Beit Hanoun - United Nations Investigation

United Nations Investigation

On 15 November 2006, the United Nations Human Rights Council adopted resolution S-3/1 which called for a fact-finding mission, consisting of Archbishop Desmond Tutu and Prof. Christine Chinkin of the United Kingdom to travel to Beit Hanoun. The resolution was accepted by a wide margin, with only seven countries opposing and six abstaining.

In reaction to the resolution, the Foreign Affairs Minister of Israel released a statement noting that Israel had already expressed regret regarding the incident, decrying the U.N.'s "ignoring of the ongoing terrorism against Israeli civilians by the Palestinian terrorist organizations", and expecting the U.N. "to show a more balanced and fairer approach toward Israel and not to automatically adopt any notion from those whose only desire is to discredit Israel."

On three occasions, the mission attempted to travel to Beit Hanoun via Israel. Each of these attempts was frustrated by the refusal of the Government of Israel to cooperate with the mission. The mission finally visited Beit Hanoun from 27 to 29 May 2008.

In its final report, the mission concluded that "n the absence of a well-founded explanation from the Israeli military – who is in sole possession of the relevant facts – the mission must conclude that there is a possibility that the shelling of Beit Hanoun constituted a war crime."

Tutu has vigorously protested the overall response to the incident: "The right to life has been violated not just through the killings, but also through the lack of an adequate investigation of the killings."