In an unprecedented report, the Human Rights Watch accused Hamas Thursday of committing war crimes during an 11-day conflict with Israel in May by firing thousands of rockets toward populated areas in Isarel .
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The watchdog, which has a long-standing history of criticizing Israel, also concluded that a misfired rocket launched by Hamas killed seven Palestinians when it landed in the Gaza Strip.
The New York-based rights group has repeatedly come under fire by Israel and its supporters over reports accusing Israel of war crimes against the Palestinians as well as of "apartheid" and persecution. But in its latest report, it agreed with most legal experts – and Israel itself – that rocket fire from Palestinian population centers directed at Israeli civilian areas is a violation of international law.
"Palestinian armed groups during the May fighting flagrantly violated the laws-of-war prohibition on indiscriminate attacks by launching thousands of unguided rockets towards Israeli cities," said Eric Goldstein, acting executive director of the group's Middle East and North Africa division.
The watchdog based its conclusions on an investigation into Hamas rocket attacks that killed 12 civilians in Israel, including two children and one soldier.
The war erupted on May 10 after Hamas fired a barrage of rockets toward Israel in support of Palestinian protests at Jerusalem's Al-Aqsa Mosque compound and the Sheikh Jarrah eviction dispute.
Israel has said it struck over 1,000 targets in the Gaza Strip during the fighting, while Hamas launched more than 4,300 rockets and mortar rounds at Israel, including barrages directed at major population centers around Tel Aviv and Jerusalem.
"The rockets and mortars that Palestinian armed groups fired lack guidance systems and are prone to misfire, making them extremely inaccurate and thus inherently indiscriminate when directed toward areas with civilians," the report said. "Launching such rockets to attack civilian areas is a war crime."
Human Rights Watch concluded that a Hamas rocket fired on May 10 killed seven people, including two children, in the Gaza Strip city of Jabaliya. It said the number of Palestinians killed by errant Hamas fire might be higher.
"Munitions apparently directed toward Israel that misfired and fell short killed and injured an undetermined number of Palestinians in Gaza," the report said, adding that Hamas has not "provided information about how many rockets misfired or how many people died as a result in Gaza and there are no precise independent estimates."
The May conflict was the fourth war between Israel and Hamas since the terrorist group seized control of Gaza in 2007. Founded in the 1980s, the group rejects Israel's existence, is responsible for scores of deadly attacks on Israeli civilians and is considered a terrorist group by the United States, European Union and Israel.
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