We call on the Government in Gaza to Put a Stop to Internal Attacks and to Investigate all such Violations Perpetrated During the Israeli Military Invasion   During the recent Israeli military invasion of the Gaza Strip – unprecedented in scale and brutality - human rights organizations witnessed a sharp deterioration in the internal human rights situation; involving repeated incidents of killings, severe beatings and shootings in the legs and feet.
  Available information indicates that 27 Palestinians were killed between the start of the Israeli military invasion and the date of publication of this statement.
A significant number of those killed were detainees at the Gaza Central Prison – a majority of whom had been sentenced to death for a variety of crimes, most prominently treason and spying for an enemy state.
Other incidents included killings during family disputes and the misuse of weapons.
The motives for some of the killings remain unclear as not all the victims fall into the abovementioned categories.
    There were also repeated incidents of shootings in the legs or severe beatings.
The undersigned human rights organizations have documented dozens of cases of individuals hospitalized with gunshot wounds or injuries caused by beatings or torture.
In all of these cases, the backgrounds to the incidents and the identities of the perpetrators have remained unknown; although there have been accusations made by the Fatah movement that the Hamas movement is responsible.
     There were also repeated complaints regarding the disappearance of family members during the Israeli military invasion of Gaza.
Human rights organizations’ lawyers were unable to ascertain whether these individuals had been detained by the occupying Israeli forces; the Israeli occupation authorities deny holding them.
This necessitates an internal investigation into their fate and whether or not they have been detained by Palestinian actors.
    In light of the repeated occurrence of killings, beatings and arrests of Palestinians, it is legitimate to question the role of the Government in Gaza - and its security forces - in detecting and prosecuting these crimes and their perpetrators.
The undersigned organizations are concerned that the addressing of these crimes will be affected by the state of political division in the Palestinian political system.
Whilst recognizing the difficult conditions faced by the Government and its security forces during the Israeli invasion, its responsibility to uphold the rule of law persists.
     The under-signed organizations strongly condemn these acts which are both crimes under Palestinian law and grave violations of human rights.
These violations took place during the recent Israeli military invasion of the Gaza Strip – unprecedented in scale and brutality – which systematically targeted civilians and civilian property.
Any delay by human rights organization in addressing these internal violations stems from a preoccupation with responding to the far-reaching war crimes and crimes against humanity perpetrated by the Israeli Occupation Forces, and not from any assessment that these internal violations are not grave and unacceptable human rights violations.
  The undersigned organizations affirm that the right to life is an inherent human right, affirmed by the message of the monotheistic faiths and protected in full by relevant human rights conventions.
In addition, Palestinian law clearly defines the few cases in which the right to life can be contravened, as well as according to which criteria and under which conditions.
Operating outside the scope of such laws is deemed a crime by any civilized society which respects the law and the safeguarding of human rights.
      We, the undersigned organizations affirm that the crimes of killing and torture are crimes with no statute of limitations; we condemn these attacks and call on the Government in Gaza to: ·         Open an investigation into each and every case of killing, torture or shooting regardless of the background to the incident ·         Bring the perpetrators of these acts – which are crimes under Palestinian law - to justice     We, the undersigned organizations, emphasize the necessity to publish the findings of the investigations in order to guarantee an end to violations of the law, to uphold its sovereignty and to enforce its authority in society.
  Signatories: ·         Al Haq ·         Addameer Association for Human Rights ·         Gaza Community Mental Health Program ·         Al Mezan Center for Human Rights