(Haaretz).Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Wednesday said that allowing the International Criminal Court in the Hague try the war crimes alleged in the recently compiled Goldstone Commission report on the Gaza conflict between Israel and Hamas, would deal a death blow to the peace process.
Speaking during a meeting with ambassadors from Asia and the Pacific islands, Netanyahu said that the Goldstone report and its conclusions could impede peace and make it difficult for democratic nations around the globe to fight terror.
The principle that a democratic nation has a legitimate right to respond to terror has been crushed by a body belonging to the United Nations, Netanyahu said. "This is a serious blow to the UN,It [the UN] could revert back to the days when it compared Zionism to racism. It's starting in Israel, but it will reach other nations and it will hurt the UN."
"Anyone who supports the Goldstone report and its conclusions is in effect against peace,since no country, and no people, would be willing to take risks for the sake of peace if their right to self defense was taken away."
"If the report reaches the international court in Hague, it will bring the peace process to a halt because Israel won't take the risks necessary to achieve peace if it is not assured the right to defend itself. Anyone who desires peace must stop this report right now," the prime minister concluded, asking the ambassadors to pass the message along to their respective governments.
Speaking during a meeting with ambassadors from Asia and the Pacific islands, Netanyahu said that the Goldstone report and its conclusions could impede peace and make it difficult for democratic nations around the globe to fight terror.
The principle that a democratic nation has a legitimate right to respond to terror has been crushed by a body belonging to the United Nations, Netanyahu said. "This is a serious blow to the UN,It [the UN] could revert back to the days when it compared Zionism to racism. It's starting in Israel, but it will reach other nations and it will hurt the UN."
"Anyone who supports the Goldstone report and its conclusions is in effect against peace,since no country, and no people, would be willing to take risks for the sake of peace if their right to self defense was taken away."
"If the report reaches the international court in Hague, it will bring the peace process to a halt because Israel won't take the risks necessary to achieve peace if it is not assured the right to defend itself. Anyone who desires peace must stop this report right now," the prime minister concluded, asking the ambassadors to pass the message along to their respective governments.