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Last update - 15:31 27/10/2009
VIDEO / Meshal: Hamas ready to probe Goldstone report
By Haaretz Service
Tags: Gaza, Hamas, Cast Lead 
WATCH: Hamas chief says group doesn't aim to kill civilians, but 'rockets are inaccurate in targeting.'



Hamas' political leader has said that his Islamist organization is willing to form an investigative committee to present "the facts" of its actions during the winter conflict with Israel, following a United Nations report which accused both sides of war crimes during the hostilities.

"When Hamas deals seriously with the Goldstone report, with some reservations on it, this is evidence that Hamas respects the international law and is ready to cooperate with this law," Khaled Meshal told the Web site Palestine Note in an interview from his base in Damascus.
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"If the report or any other side has any reservations on Hamas' actions, we are ready to explain them and we will form an honest and neutral investigative committee in Gaza to give Goldstone and its committee and the international community the facts."

South African jurist Richard Goldstone, who headed the commission of inquiry set up by the UN human rights council, said when the report was released in September that, "The mission concluded that actions amounting to war crimes and possibly, in some respects, crimes against humanity, were committed by the Israel Defense Force (IDF)."

Goldstone added that, "There's no question that the firing of rockets and mortars [by armed groups from Gaza] was deliberate and calculated to cause loss of life and injury to civilians and damage to civilian structures. The mission found that these actions also amount to serious war crimes and also possibly crimes against humanity."

But Meshal rejected the claim that Hamas had deliberately targeted Israeli civilians during the fighting, when thousands of rockets were fired from the Gaza Strip - which it controls - into Israeli communities.

"Hamas does not aim to kill civilians. Hamas does not want to target the civilians," he said. "Hamas defends itself, but because it has simple abilities and its rockets are inaccurate in targeting, so it reaches the civilians, but we do not intend to do that."

The Hamas leader also said that the group is willing to abide by any international attempts to secure a peace deal between Israel and the Palestinians, and that Hamas is willing to accept the borders that existed before Israel captured the West Bank, Gaza Strip, East Jerusalem and Golan Heights in the 1967 Six Day War.

He added that the onus was the Obama administration to pressure Israel into working toward an agreement. He said that the United States and the international community had been unable to get Israel to even suspend settlement construction in the West Bank, which he said cast doubt on the American ability to persuade Israel to advance the peace process.

"The Obama administration tried to force [Prime Minister Benjamin] Netanyahu to freeze the settlements in order to start the negotiations, but he refused," Meshal said. "So if neither the Obama administration nor the international community were able to freeze the settlements for a period of one year, how will they force him to withdraw from the 1967 borders?"

"Whether with the Palestinians or with Syria, how are they going to force him to recognize the Palestinian rights in Jerusalem and the right to return and the land? As a matter of fact, the problem is with Israel and the problem is there should be an international will, led by the Obama administration to force Israel not to rebel against the international law."

Meshal said that the Palestinians, including Hamas, would be willing to accept a peace deal based on the 1967, and warned that this was the only option for peace.

"...[I]f the Arabs and the Palestinians found seriousness from the American administration in pressuring Israel to withdraw to 1967 borders, and recognize the Palestinian and Arab rights and stops its occupation and aggression, I'm telling you that the Arabs and Palestinians will cooperate with the American administration and there will be peace in the region," he told Palestine Note. "Without that, the struggle will remain and all the American and international attempts will fail because in brief they're not moving in the right direction."

Courtesy of Palestine Note
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  1.   Hamas to inspect damage in Sderot? 15:20  |  Levyson 27/10/09
  2.   Inaccurate rockets - but aimed at Sderot 15:33  |  David Plane 27/10/09
  3.   Mashal is a liar! 15:36  |  Maurice 27/10/09
  4.   A normal civilized society? 15:42  |  Ron B. 27/10/09
  5.   Transparent Bullmerde 15:52  |  Brad 27/10/09
  6.   Incredibly smart 16:16  |  Isaiah 27/10/09
  7.   I don`t beleive what I am reading. HAMAS doesn`t kill civilians? 16:20  |  Dan 27/10/09
  8.   The very existance of Hamas is a crime against humanity 16:40  |  Fivish 27/10/09
  9.   meshal 16:44  |  zoe 27/10/09
  10.   Durson, Linthwaite, Maureen Ann? Do you agree? 17:00  |  Joe Sittizen 27/10/09
  11.   peace 17:10  |  kibishi 27/10/09
  12.   Brad (4), exactly, but why not? 17:15  |  Fritz T. 27/10/09
  13.   #10 Joe Sittizen 17:28  |  Chris Linthwaite 27/10/09
  14.   Iran is coaching Hamas very preofessionally - that much is clear 17:40  |  David Moshkovitch 27/10/09
  15.   No Intention to Harm Civilians 17:49  |  Ron 27/10/09
  16.   a little bit late.... 18:03  |  inyaki 27/10/09
  17.   Levyson Uh? No they find out who fired `em and what at. 18:24  |  CJ 27/10/09
  18.   Ron B - What with? Israel had embargoes any building materials 18:27  |  CJ 27/10/09
  19.   inyaki- It`s illegal to acquire territory by war. 18:32  |  CJ 27/10/09
  20.   hamas 18:33  |  namorf 27/10/09
  21.   Forget 67 work on 2009 18:46  |  Donald 27/10/09
  22.   With all the IDF bases in the south, Hamas can hit only cities? 19:06  |  Yitzhak 27/10/09
  23.   It the "Oops" Defence 19:22  |  ankhfnkhonsu 27/10/09
  24.   Give me a break! 19:28  |  Larry 27/10/09
  25.   question.... 19:38  |  DanLondon 27/10/09
  26.   What is he really saying here 19:58  |  Bill 27/10/09
  27.   The rockets 20:07  |  bgfromgb 27/10/09
  28.   Hamas willing to accept `67 borders 20:52  |  Observer 27/10/09
  29.   The Palestinian chickening out 21:07  |  The truth 27/10/09
  30.   bgfromgb Collateral, ever heard of it? 21:23  |  CJ 27/10/09
  31.   CJ - The Arabs Attacked Israel in 67 21:25  |  Jane 27/10/09
  32.   Hamas Who? 21:27  |  Jane 27/10/09
  33.   Lucky for Him that he is in Damascus, 21:33  |  ARTH 27/10/09
  34.   Hamas does not mean to kill civilians. 21:33  |  Catarin 27/10/09
  35.   Rockets shouldn`t have fired in the first place 21:34  |  *BEN JABO 27/10/09
  36.   They say that they will accept 67 borders 21:37  |  Ki`emli 27/10/09
  37.   don`t you know, Mr Meshal, that when doing stand-up comedy - 22:43  |  ivo 27/10/09
  38.   Qassams just happen to land on Sderot. 23:42  |  PETER SM 27/10/09
  39.   Ok Linthwaite - the next step from you... 23:48  |  Joe Sittizen 27/10/09
  40.   Hamas leader: rockets are inaccurate 23:58  |  Michael 27/10/09
  41.   to ankhfnkhonsu 00:27  |  kibishi 28/10/09
  42.   "If Hamas is to investigate misdeeds, will they be allowed to ins 01:26  |  Tom 28/10/09
  43.   #13 Chris Linthwaite Good of you to concur 01:37  |  H 28/10/09
  44.   Hamas targets civilians: Israel guarantees civilian casualties 01:49  |  Paul Freedman 28/10/09
  45.   How curious that I was censored 02:08  |  Mark Lincoln 28/10/09
  46.   #13 LInthwaite - It really doesn`t matter 02:14  |  *BEN JABO 28/10/09
  47.   #19 CJ - It`s illegal to start a war in the first place 02:20  |  Malalch HaMavet 28/10/09
  48.   This could be Golden Oppotunity for Israel 02:35  |  Robert 28/10/09
  49.   Accept what you have, cause that`s all you are goint to get. 02:39  |  Edward 28/10/09
  50.   Observer #28 05:16  |  Sterling 28/10/09
  51.   bgfromgb @27 05:20  |  Sterling 28/10/09
  52.   Asymmetry and symmetry 05:36  |  A. T. Wilson 28/10/09
  53.   Asymmetry and symmetry, pt 2 06:01  |  A. T. Wilson 28/10/09
  54.   CJ: Sydney 06:08  |  Brad 28/10/09
  55.   what is Israel afraid of? 07:54  |  Liz 28/10/09
  56.   #54 Liz - Don`t be so silly 15:48  |  *BEN JABO 28/10/09
  57.   Meshal:If Hamas doesn`t target Civilians then the suicide bombers 07:57  |  need seeing eye dogs 29/10/09
  58.   CJ#30 08:44  |  bgfromgb 29/10/09
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