Abbas: PNA to punish Israel for war crimes

Source: Xinhua | 01-28-2009 16:52

RAMALLAH, Jan. 28 (Xinhua) -- Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas said the Palestinian National Authority (PNA) is seeking to punish Israel for the war crimes it committed in the Gaza Strip, an official report said on Wednesday.

The official PNA Wafa news agency said in a report published on Wednesday that President Abbas said the PNA has called for launching an international investigation panel to punish Israel.

"We appealed to international war crimes courts and called for setting up a query to investigate these war crimes. We'll do our best to prove that Israel committed awful and disgusting crimes," said Abbas on Tuesday night.

The news agency said that Abbas made the statements in a meeting at his Ramallah headquarters with Palestinian intellectuals and politicians.

Israel had carried out a 22-day military assault on the Gaza Strip, which ended on Jan. 18. Around 1,400 people were killed and 5,500 wounded, almost half of them civilians, women and children.