Int'l prosecutor Goldstone: Gaza probe goes on without Israeli OK
By JERUSALEM POST STAFFFormer international prosecutor Richard Goldstone said Wednesday that he will go ahead with his UN investigation into possible war crimes in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict over Gaza even though Israel has withheld its approval.
Goldstone said the UN investigators would enter Gaza through Egypt if necessary, but they had wanted to visit Israel first to assess what happened there.
"I'm disappointed, and the members of the mission are disappointed, that we've had no positive response from the Israeli government," he said. "It would have been our wish to start there, to visit southern Israel, Sderot, to go into Gaza through the front door, to go to the West Bank, which is also included in our mission."
Israel has indicated reluctance to go along with the mission ordered by the UN Human Rights Council because the original instructions were only to check what Israelis did to Palestinians. But Goldstone, a Jew with close ties to Israel, only accepted the assignment if he could see what happened on both sides.RECOMMENDED STORIESAt least 63 wounded, one killed after four rounds of Iranian attack slam Israel JUNE 12, 2025Israel trying to persuade US to join in continuing strikes on Iran, sources tell 'Post'JUNE 13, 2025Vacation ruse, phantom trip, hostage decoy: How Israel misled Tehran before Iran strikeJUNE 13, 2025Mossad leads series of secret attack operations in heart of IranJUNE 13, 2025