Thursday November 5, 2009, 2:11 am
Washington DC: Today, the National Association of Muslim American Women (NAMAW) submitted the "Report of the United Nations Fact Finding Mission on the Gaza Conflict" better known as the Goldstone Report to the International Criminal Court at the Hague in the Netherlands. The report was submitted via e-mail, and also priority mail as documentation and evidence in support of a communication submitted by the group entitled, "Communication on the situation in Gaza and the Goldstone Report."

Under the rules of the International Criminal Court, non state parties can submit Communications to the court that are taken up for analysis and assessment the same as referrals from the UNSC or UN member nation/states. According to article 53 of the Rome Statute, the only difference is that the Court is not automatically complelled to initiate an investigation into the situation brought to its attention as it must when the referral comes from the UN Security Council. The International Court must now review the Communication and the supporting documentaion and evidence, and decide if there is enough probable cause, and supporting documentation to compel an investigation.

Considering that the UNHRC recently endorsed the report, which alleges that Israel committed war crimes and possibly crimes against humanity in its December 2008 military assault on Gaza, the group is hoping that the court will find Goldstone's report sufficient evidence to compel an investigation, along with reports by the World Health Organization and international human rights organizations such as Human Rights Watch and Amnesty International.

Whereas the Goldstone report only called for action by the court if Israel refused to conduct an investigation of its own into the allegations made in the report, and failed to bring suspected persons to trial, the International Court is now seemingly involved as a result of the appeal made by NAMAW, a UN accredited NGO with the Division on the Exercise of the Inalienable Rights of the Palestinians, for a Court assessment of the alleged facts and an investigation.

NAMAW Chairwoman Anisa Abd el Fattah says that the group has received confirmation from the Court that the Communication was successfully received. What is left now, is to see if the Court will find the Goldstone report as compelling as many, including the US and Israel might fear.

Along with the allegations of war crimes and possible crimes against humanity as mentioned in the Goldstone Report, the NAMAW communication also alleges that the economic embargo being imposed upon Gaza by Israel and Egypt is genocide, and that Israel also used banned weapons in its December 2008 assault, that included White Phosphorous, Depleted Uranium and the DIME which shoots small metal shards into flesh that cannot be removed with serious damage.

NAMAW's Communication to the Court and the supporting documentation will be viewable at the website, namaw.org.
The National Association of Muslim American Women (NAMAW) is the United State's first and only Muslim woman's pro-life and pro-family organization. We are an accredited NGO with the UN Division on the Inalienable Rights of the Palestinians and members of the Coalition for the International Criminal Court.

Thursday November 5, 2009, 2:14 am
The Hon. Luis Moreno-Ocampo

International Criminal Court

Office of the Prosecutor

Communications

P.O. Box 19519

2500 CM The Hague

The Netherlands
November 3, 2009

Your Honor,

On September 15, 2009 the United Nations Human Rights Commission (UNHRC) endorsed a report issued by a team of credible and respected UN investigators. The report is entitled, Human Rights in Palestine and Other Occupied Territories: Report of the United Nations Fact Finding Mission on the Gaza Conflict. The report is more popularly known as the Goldstone Report.

The UNHRC endorsement of the report, and its allegations that Israel committed war crimes and possibly crimes against humanity in its December 27th assault on Gaza, Palestine, was a major step in a decade’s long struggle to end impunity and to hold Israel accountable for alleged illegal actions being carried out in the occupied territories, including its continued occupation of the territories in spite of UN Resolutions calling for Israel to end its illegal occupation and to withdraw to its mandated 1967 borders.

Unfortunately, in response to the UNHRC endorsement of the Goldstone Report and its findings, the US Congress is preparing to vote on and perhaps pass a non binding resolution that advises US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and UN Ambassador to the UN, Susan Rice to do what ever is necessary to prevent the Goldstone Report from reaching the UN Security Council, or the International Criminal Court.

Whereas such actions on the part of the Secretary of State, and/or the US Ambassador would be unfortunate, our concern is that even if by some chance the Goldstone Report does reach the UN Security Council, the US will use its veto to prevent the Security Council from referring the report to the International Criminal Court, thereby preventing the initiation of an investigation into the allegations made in the report, as required by article 53 of the Rome Statute.

Acting in anticipation of such circumstances, The National Association of Muslim American Women (NAMAW) a UN accredited NGO, and member of the Committee on the Exercise of the Inalienable Rights of the Palestinians, takes this opportunity to present to the Court as a Communication under the rules of referrals and communication with the court, the Report of the United Nations Fact Finding Mission on the Gaza Conflict, incorporated herein by reference.

Our communication with the court in this respect, is intended to endorse the report and its allegations of war crimes and possible crimes against humanity carried out in the December 27 2009 Israeli military assault on Gaza in Palestine, and to ask that the court analyze the information and allegations set forth within the report, to determine if such allegations and findings provide the necessary requirements under Rome Statute article 53 for the court to initiate an investigation into the charges.

Our communication, along with presenting the Goldstone Report for the court’s review and analysis, brings other information to the courts attention. It is our hope that the additional information will strengthen our request for an investigation into the alleged Israeli war crimes and crimes against humanity as mentioned in the Goldstone report. This information is evidence provided within reports from Human Rights Watch and other international human rights organizations, that Israel possibility committed war crimes not mentioned in the Goldstone Report, including the use of banned weapons such as White Phosphorus and Depleted Uranium. [1]

There are also reports that as a result of the possible use of banned weapons, including a weapon known as the DIME, Israel has caused an increase in birth defects in infants born in Gaza after the December 2008 war.[2]

Other information presented to the court through this communication includes information concerning the continued illegal economic embargo being imposed upon the Gaza Strip in apparent violation of Articles 6 and 7 of the Rome Statute that prohibit acts of genocide and crimes against humanity. The Statute describes genocide as “acts committed to destroy, in whole or part, a national, ethnical, racial or religious group ...” The statute includes such acts as “ killing members of the group, causing serious bodily harm or mental harm to members of the group, deliberately inflicting on the group conditions of life calculated to bring about its physical destruction in whole or in part, imposing measures intended to prevent births within the group, forcibly transferring children of the group to another group.”

Article 7 defines “Crimes against Humanity” as “acts committed as part of a widespread or systemic attack directed against any civilian population, with knowledge of the attack.” According to the Rome Statute such acts include, but may not be limited to murder, extermination, torture, rape, persecution against any identifiable group or collectivity on political, racial, national, ethnic, cultural, religious, gender or other grounds...”

Under the above mentioned definition, the Rome Statue also criminalizes apartheid, and “other inhumane acts of a similar character intentionally causing great suffering or serious injury to body, or physical health.” [3]

In consideration of the information provided within this communication, including information provided within the Report of the United Nations Fact Finding Mission on the Gaza Conflict, incorporated by reference and attached, the National Association of Muslim American Women (NAMAW) appeals to the court to accept our communication in good faith, and to act urgently to initiate the necessary analysis and assessment of information provided. We are confident that upon such analysis and assessment, the court will find enough credible evidence to support an investigation into the alleged war crimes, crimes against humanity and genocide carried out by Israel in the Gaza Strip, Palestine.

Respectfully submitted by
Anisa Abd el Fattah, Chairwoman
National Association of Muslim American Women (NAMAW)

Please write asking the ICC to investigate!

Thursday November 5, 2009, 2:42 am
GOOD ON THEM
- Thank You Pete

Thursday November 5, 2009, 6:48 am
"Considering that the UNHRC recently endorsed the report, which alleges that Israel committed war crimes and possibly crimes against humanity in its December 2008 military assault on Gaza, the group is hoping that the court will find Goldstone's report sufficient evidence to compel an investigation, along with reports by the World Health Organization and international human rights organizations such as Human Rights Watch and Amnesty International. "

We know Israel will not conduct an investigation into these allegations and, if they did, it would not be honest. This is a good first step to holding Israel accountable for the atrocities.

Thursday November 5, 2009, 11:37 am
I hope ok to Add Pete - JVFP have created a little petition of sorts which may help. http://www.supportgoldstone.org/
Dear Marion, Netenyahu has already said to the knesset, that he wont let anyone face any enquires and Hamas have agreed to.

Thursday November 5, 2009, 5:04 pm
TY Pete for the post. Israel must pay in someway for these shocking inhumane tactics against Palestinians. They are accountable - just as others have been held accountable for their part in crimes of war. Love & Light

Tuesday November 10, 2009, 7:01 am
And here in the U.S. our House denies it. You should see the background info on that, and the language of the condemnation. It's like the Devil is talking, frighteningly twisted and full of lies. Our "special relationship" with Israel has damaged the character of their nation and ours, perhaps irreparably, and has been the continued cause of poverty and injustice in the Occupied Territories. I hope history will one day be a harsh judge, and humanity will look back in horror at this dark time in our foreign policy.