Congresswoman Nita Lowey (Westchester/Rockland), the Ranking Member on the House Appropriations Committee, released the following statement on the UN Human Rights Council inquiry on the Gaza conflict:
"The UN Human Rights Council continues its longstanding practice of making unfair allegations against Israeli forces. Such reckless behavior attempts to discredit Israel before the international community while giving a pass to the instigators of last summer's conflict -- Hamas.
"The Commission of Inquiry Report fails to condemn Hamas' terrorist tactics -- particularly the indiscriminate firing of rockets into Israel, the labyrinth of underground tunnels from which Hamas launched attacks, and the use of schools and hospitals to store Hamas rockets -- many of which are root causes of the conflict.
"The Council has missed yet another opportunity to credibly assess the real violations of human rights and other crimes of war. I urge the Administration to strongly oppose such biased accounts against Israel and to continue to defend Israel's legitimate right to defend itself in all international organizations."