Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak (R) speaks with U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton at the Presidential palace in Cairo (11/4). Clinton brought her flagging effort to revive Middle East peace talks to Cairo with little sign that her round of diplomacy has helped break the impasse. (ANTARA/Reuters/Tarek Mostafa/*)

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United Nations (ANTARA News/Xinhua-OANA) - Arab and Non-Aligned Movement countries Wednesday called upon the UN General Assembly to act upon the report and findings of the UN fact finding mission on the Gaza conflict to further prevent "ongoing lack of accountability."

The statement came as UN Egyptian Ambassador Maged Abdelaziz introduced a draft resolution to the plenary session of the 64th General Assembly session during the debate to consider the Goldstone report that investigated alleged war crimes of both Israel and Hamas militants during the 22-day Gaza conflict which broke out on Dec. 27, 2008.

Speaking on behalf of the 118-member Non-Aligned Movement (NAM), Abdelaziz said they were "gravely concerned about the findings of the investigation" as well as the conclusions by the UN secretary- general`s Board of Inquiry and conclusions of the Arab League Fact Finding Mission.

"The Non-Aligned Movement urges the General Assembly and other United Nations principal and subsidiary organs to seriously consider and act upon the report and findings of the United Nations Fact Finding Mission on the Gaza military action in accordance with the Human Rights Council resolution," he said.

Abdelaziz called on both Israel and Palestine to "launch independent investigations, in conformity with international standards, into the serious violations reported by the Mission."

"We believe that it is imperative that the General Assembly demonstrate its unequivocal support for human rights and the protection of civilians on both Palestinian and Israeli sides," he said.

The serious human rights law violations, as found in the Goldstone report, "will make a significant contribution towards the promotion of accountability for the perpetration of such violations and crimes and towards bringing an ultimate end to the culture of impunity that has for too long prevailed," Abdelaziz said.

"The Non-Aligned Movement reiterates once again its call on Israel, the Occupying Power, to end its collective punitive measures imposed on the civilian population in Gaza, which have caused immense suffering among the Palestinian people," he said.

The "ongoing lack of accountability and justice further undermines the possibilities for a successful peace process" which continues to prolong the cycle, he said. "The Non-Aligned Movement remains ready to actively engage in any possible action to guarantee the investigation and prosecution of all those responsible for crimes against the civilian population in the Gaza Strip."

The president of the 64th General Assembly session, Ali Treki, has received a letter from the UN Human Rights Council transmitting the report of the mission, which was headed by Justice Richard Goldstone, a former prosecutor at the UN war crimes tribunals for the former Yugoslavia and Rwanda.

The four-member investigative team found evidence that both Israeli forces and Palestinian militants committed serious war crimes and breaches of humanitarian law, which may amount to crimes against humanity, during the conflict in December 2008 and January 2009.

The Geneva-based Human Rights Council, when it took up the report two weeks ago, had strongly condemned a host of Israeli measures in the occupied Palestinian territory and called on both sides to implement the mission`s recommendations.

Wednesday`s meeting follows a request from the Arab Group in New York, supported by the 118-member Non-Aligned Movement (NAM), in considering the report in the assembly during the first week of November.

After the debate on the Goldstone report, the GA will put the draft resolution to vote, which would call upon both Israel and Palestine to conduct "independent and credible" probes into the alleged war crimes. (*)

Editor: Aditia Maruli
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