Goldstone challenges Obama to point out flaws in the report

Oct 22, 2009, 13:28 GMT

Cairo - South African judge Richard Goldstone, who wrote a a fact-finding report on the December-January war between Israel and Hamas in the Gaza Strip, has challenged the United States to justify its objections on the report.

Goldstone told Al-Jazeera English TV channel Thursday that he is still waiting for the Obama administration to clarify its claim that the report has a number of flaws.

'I've yet to hear what the flaws of the report are. I'd be happy to respond if I know what they are,' he told the Doha-based channel.

Goldstone was commissioned by the United Nation Human Rights Council (UNHRC) to head an international panel to probe the fighting between Israel and Hamas in the Gaza Strip that killed 1,400 Palestinians and 10 Israelis.

The report concluded that both Israel and Hamas likely committed war crimes and possibly crimes against humanity.

It said that each party should investigate itself objectively or the case should be handed over to the prosecutor at the International Criminal Court in The Hague.

The US said that the report was unfair toward Israel. Goldstone repeatedly denied this, saying that he investigated all sides to the conflict.

Israel, which says it has already launched investigations, rejected the resolution and the report, while Hamas has welcomed the UNHRC's endorsement of the report last Friday.

The South African war crimes prosecutor also said he believes many of those who criticized the report did not read it.

'You know, what proves this is that the level of criticism haven't got to the substance of the report,' added Goldstone.

Most major human rights groups and the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, Navi Pillay, have backed the findings in the report.