Human-rights watchdog demands "Israelis" answer for civilian deaths

   "Amnesty International is probing the deaths of four Lebanese, including BBC driver Abdel-Rahman Taqqoush, believed to have been killed by "Israeli" tank fire during "Israel's" withdrawal.
Meanwhile, in a separate open letter detailing its recent trip to Khiam prison, the human-rights watchdog also said, “there should be no blanket amnesty for any serious abuses” committed by "Israel's" proxy militiamen.
“For torture and other serious abuses, they should be brought to justice in fair trials without the death penalty,” the letter said.
Concerning the deaths of four Lebanese civilians during "Israel's" pullout, the organization released a statement on Monday, stressing that “the "Israeli" authorities must bring to justice anyone found responsible for serious violations of the laws of war and compensate the victims of any such violations.”
AI said that it was writing to "Israeli" Prime Minister Ehud Barak requesting a thorough investigation into the attacks that killed the four civilians and wounded several others.
It said that it had gathered information suggesting that in at least four incidents on May 22 and 23, “"Israeli" forces directed tank fire from the "Israeli" side of the border at Lebanese civilians, killing four people and injuring several others.”
Amnesty stated that “if these attacks were, indeed, willfully directed at civilians, the "Israeli" Army has committed war crimes and those responsible should be brought to justice.”
The four civilians; Abdel-Karim Assaf, 22; Ibrahim Marouni, 16; Salman Rammal, age not available; and Taqqoush, 54 , were killed “when there was no hostile military action and many Lebanese civilians were on the move, celebrating the withdrawal and their return to their villages.” The organization said that they were apparently targeted without warning.
According to Amnesty International, the laws of war, included in the 1949 Geneva Conventions and their two 1977 additional protocols, categorically prohibit any direct attack against civilians or civilian objects, including attacks made in reprisal. They also prohibit attacks that do not attempt to distinguish between military targets and civilians, as well as attacks which, although aimed at a legitimate military target, have a disproportionate impact on civilians or civilian objects.
The organization collected part of its information during a recent trip to south Lebanon, in which it also visited the Khiam detention center.
On May 27, a delegation from the organization, along with former detainees, visited Khiam, where, it said, “hundreds of Lebanese nationals have been detained over the years without charge or trial.”
In its open letter, AI pledged continuous support for the former prisoners, saying “international solidarity will be essential to provide a minimum of practical as well as psychological support to the victims of Khiam.”
It said the crimes committed in Khiam were “the most serious violations of human rights and international humanitarian law, in short, war crimes.”
Amnesty also said that, together with the militia, “the state of "Israel" … is fully accountable for the arbitrary detention, torture and other abuses committed in Khiam.”
The delegation described its tour of Khiam as “an extraordinary and moving day, full of incongruous sights and strong, mixed emotions.”
“On the one hand, a festive atmosphere, with kids waving flags, primarily those of Hizbullah and Amal, playing in the wreck of a military vehicle abandoned in the central courtyard and enjoying refreshments from vendors at the gate of the center. On the other hand, former prisoners, sometimes with their families and sometimes alone, telling their stories, bumping into each other, recognizing and embracing each other in highly emotional scenes, often fighting back the tears.”

The Daily Star, 7-6-2000.