Israel rejects UN calls for inquiry into Gaza war

Israel rejected UN calls to open an independent inquiry into its conduct in last winter’s Gaza Strip war and said it would launch a diplomatic offensive to block any attempt to bring its soldiers before an international war crimes tribunal.

An independent investigation into the war was a key recommendation of an explosive UN report that accused the Jewish state of war crimes and possible crimes against humanity.

The report, released on Tuesday by UN-appointed investigators, said Israel used disproportionate firepower and disregarded the likelihood of civilian deaths in the offensive, which killed hundreds of non-combatants and caused widespread damage to Gaza.