A/HRC/3/2
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whether in fact they were fully aware of these obligations. For example, as reported on BBC
news on 27 July,128 Israeli Justice Minister Haim Raimon said: “that in order to prevent
casualties among Israeli soldiers battling Hezbollah militants in southern Lebanon, villages
should be flattened by the Israeli air force before ground troops moved in”. He added that Israel
had given the civilians of southern Lebanon ample time to quit the area and therefore anyone still
remaining there could be considered a Hezbollah supporter. “All those now in south Lebanon
are terrorists who are related in some way to Hezbollah”, Mr. Ramon said.
(b)
Propaganda leaflets and messages
159. In Beirut and other places, leaflets were also dropped but in the main they were of an
anti-Hezbollah propaganda nature rather than warnings. The same applies to the
computer-generated telephone calls many people received. An example of this type of leaflet is
as follows and further examples given in annex VI. IDF tells the people of Lebanon that they are
in conflict with the Hezbollah terrorists, not the people of Lebanon, and that they should not
allow themselves to be used as human shields (3 August 2006):129
“To the people of Lebanon
IDF forces operated with daring and force in Baalbek, the centre of
operations of the Hezbollah terror band, in the framework of its
defense of the citizens of the State of Israel and the return of the
abducted IDF soldiers.
Know that the IDF will continue to send its long arm to wherever
Hezbollah terrorists are found, in order to strike at them forcefully
and with determination, and to neutralize their options to execute
their criminal ideology against the citizens of Israel.
Citizens of Lebanon,
The IDF forces are not acting against the Lebanese people, but
against the Hezbollah terrorists, and will continue to act as long as it
deems necessary.
Do not allow Hezbollah elements to hold you as prisoners and use
you as a human shield for the sake of foreign interests.
The State of Israel.”
160. It also appears that IDF dropped propaganda leaflets after the conflict. An example given
to the Commission by the United Nations Mine Action Coordination Centre (UNMACC)130 is as
follows:
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