Amnesty urges Israel arms embargo

Amnesty International, the human rights group, has called for a global arms embargo on Israel over its conduct during the war on Gaza.

The group on Monday called for the UN Security Council to impose the embargo until mechanisms were in place to ensure that military equipment supplied by other countries, particularly the US, was not used to violate international law.

"Israeli forces used white phosphorus and other weapons supplied by the USA to carry out serious violations of international humanitarian law, including war crimes," Donatella Rovera, who led the Amnesty's investigation in Gaza, said.

"Their attacks resulted in the death of hundreds of children and other civilians, and massive destruction of homes and infrastructure."

Amnesty's report said that it had found evidence that both Israel and Hamas had used weapons supplied from overseas to carry out attacks on civilians during the three-week conflict at the start of the year.

The Amnesty report said fragments and components of artillery, tank shells, mortar fins and airborne missiles and bombs were found in school playgrounds, hospitals and homes in Gaza.

Hamas condemned

Rovera also condemned armed Palestinian groups for firing hundreds of rockets at civilian areas in Israel.