Israel Committing War Crimes, Netanyahu Leading Criminal Gang: Ex-PM Olmert

<p>Former Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert has launched a scathing critique of his country’s ongoing military actions in Gaza, saying that Israel is “committing war crimes” and is embroiled in a “war without purpose.”</p>
<p>In a sharply worded opinion piece published by Haaretz, Olmert accused the current Israeli government of orchestrating a military campaign with no clear objectives or “clear planning,” despite “no chances of success”. He said that “thousands of innocent Palestinians are being killed, as well as many Israeli soldiers”.</p>
<p>According to a report by the Guardian, Olmert, who led the Israeli government from 2006 to 2009 and was once a member of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu&rsquo;s Likud party, wrote: “Never since its establishment has the state of Israel waged such a war &hellip; The criminal gang headed by (Prime Minister) Benjamin Netanyahu has set a precedent without equal in Israel&rsquo;s history in this area, too”.</p>
<p>He further condemned the high civilian death toll in Gaza, stating that the number of “pointless victims among the Palestinian population” had reached “monstrous proportions.”</p>
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<h3>Gaza Conflict Now A ‘Private Political War'</h3>
<p>Olmert argued that the military operations being carried out in Gaza bear no connection to &ldquo;legitimate war goals&rdquo; and have instead turned into what he described as a &ldquo;private political war.&rdquo; The campaign, he asserted, has turned Gaza into a &ldquo;humanitarian disaster area,&rdquo; the report said.</p>
<p>Although Olmert said he had previously defended Israel against accusations of war crimes, he admitted those justifications no longer hold. “What we are doing in Gaza now is a war of devastation: Indiscriminate, limitless, cruel and criminal killing of civilians,&rdquo; he wrote. However, he asserted that “in no case did a government official give orders to hit Gazan civilians indiscriminately”.</p>
<p>He further described the government&rsquo;s approach as “knowingly, evilly, maliciously, irresponsibly dictated.”</p>
<p>”Yes, Israel is committing war crimes,” he added.</p>
<p>Olmert&rsquo;s remarks align with recent comments by Yair Golan, a former Israeli army deputy chief of staff and prominent political figure. In an interview with public broadcaster Kan, Golan said: &ldquo;A sane country does not fight against civilians, does not kill babies as a hobby, and does not give itself the aim of expelling populations.&rdquo;</p>
<p>Olmert also reiterated his views in a BBC interview last week, stressing his belief that the conflict is “a war without a purpose &mdash; a war without a chance of achieving anything that can save the lives of the hostages.”</p>
<p>Meanwhile, Israeli foreign minister, Gideon Sa&rsquo;ar, accused Olmert and Golan of &ldquo;taking an active part in a diplomatic campaign, in a propaganda war and in legal warfare against the state of Israel and the IDF&rdquo;.</p>
<p>Israel’s Education minister, Yoav Kisch, also stated that Olmert and Golan had joined a &ldquo;radical leftist chorus defaming Israel in the international arena&rdquo;.</p>
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