Israel Accused of Violating International Law

The United Nations and a leading human rights group say Israel has violated international law by destroying Palestinian homes in the Gaza Strip.In a report Monday, Human Rights Watch says the evidence strongly suggests that Israel has exaggerated threats to justify demolitions in southern Gaza. The New York-based Human Rights Watch says Israel's Army has demolished the homes of 16,000 Palestinians in the Gaza town of Rafah over the past four years. The head of the U.N. agency for Palestinian refugees says much of the recent destruction in northern Gaza is a "gross violation" of international humanitarian law. Israel says demolitions in southern Gaza disrupt arms smuggling and operations in northern Gaza stop rocket fire into Israel. The Gaza offensive that ended Friday led to the deaths of more than 100 Palestinians and three Israelis. Monday, Israeli troops shot and killed four Palestinian men in separate incidents in and around the northern Gaza Strip [more ] and [more ]