Israel Acted 'Lawfully' in 2014 Gaza War, Says Israeli Report

Israeli officials have released a report on their conduct in the Gaza war during the summer of 2014, saying their actions were both “lawful” and “legitimate.” 

The report was released ahead of the publication of a United Nations inquiry into possible war crimes committed by Israel during last summer's war – what is expected to be released June 29 – what some say was a way of preempting the U.N. findings. 

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has already dismissed the U.N. report as “baseless” and a “waste of time.” 

Israel's 277 page report was ordered by the country's Foreign Ministry and published Sunday. It states that the army made “substantial efforts” to avoid civilian deaths in Gaza, and disputed U.N. figures about the number of civilians killed or injured during the attacks. 

According to U.N. figures, 2,189 Palestinians were killed, including more than 1,486 civilians and 539 children. 

However, according to the Israeli report, only 761 of Palestinians killed were civilians, while 936 were militants and the status of the rest being unknown. The report states that Hamas militants had disguised themselves as civilians and used civilians buildings as military bases.  

The report also stated that the Israeli economy was highly damaged due to rockets being fired into their territory by Hamas. 

However, the report does not address other figures previously released by the U.N. to flag Israeli aggressions during the 50-day conflict last summer. These include the over 2,900 Palestinian children who were injured, 40,000 homes in Gaza that were destroyed or damaged, and 500,000 people were displaced as a result of Israeli aggressions. 

Palestinian boys outside their damaged house in Biet Hanoun, northern Gaza Strip January 30, 2015, after the Israeli attacks during the summer of 2014.  (Photo: Reuters)

Hamas, and other Palestinians have called the report worthless. 

Last week, Isreal also released the results of a military probe into an incident that killed four children during the 2014 Operation Protective Edge. The probe deemed the operation legal and cleared the Israeli army of any wrongdoing.

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