A/HRC/3/2 page 55 located in the al-Dardara region suffered massive damage from the intensive bombing in the area. The Khiyam former prison building was subject to intensive bombing. The Castle of Toron, in the Tibnin citadel, was directly targeted causing the destruction of important parts of the castle. In-depth damage assessment has yet to be carried out, due to the unexploded ordnance still surrounding the premises of the castle. 227. Cultural, historical and archaeological sites are clearly protected by international humanitarian law. While international humanitarian law and public international law principles applicable to cultural, historical and archaeological property admit that if they are used for military purposes they may lose their protection and can be attacked, belligerent parties need to take the necessary precautions to limit the impact of its attack on the sites. 228. After reviewing the material received and based on its visits to some of these sites, the Commission finds that Israeli attacks caused considerable and disproportionate damage to cultural, archaeological and historical property in Lebanon, which cannot be justified under military necessity. These unjustified attacks include, firstly, sites that, while not listed in the UNESCO World Heritage List, constitute nevertheless sites of extreme historical importance to the Lebanese population. That is the case of the destruction of sites in Chamaa, Khiyam, Tibnin, and Bent J’Beil. Second, Israel’s attacks in the vicinity of sites listed in the UNESCO World Heritage List, such as in the case of Baalbeck’s Jupiter’s temple, Byblos archaeological site and Tyre’s archaeological property, while not constituting a direct attack, caused important damage to specially protected property. The Commission finds that Israel could have and should have employed the necessary precautionary measures to avoid direct or indirect damage to especially protected cultural, historical and archaeological sites in Lebanese territory. 229. Taking into account the number and gravity of incidents affecting protected cultural property, the Commission finds that these attacks constitute a violation of existing norms of international law and international humanitarian law requiring the special protection of cultural, historical and archaeological sites. 12. Schools 230. The conflict took place at a time when children were on summer holidays. According to statistics issued by the Ministry of Education,197 some 16 schools were directly hit, causing major destruction of the building. Another 157 were seriously damaged, either following direct hits or in collateral damage from attacks on adjacent buildings. Some three others were in need of repair having been using as shelter for as many as 128,760 internally displaced. In Bent J’beil six schools were completely destroyed and another two partially. Two private schools and two public schools had been totally destroyed in the town of Khiyam, with another two, including a vocational (agricultural) school, badly damaged. 231. In Bent J’beil the Commission saw one school that had been destroyed completely but for the ground floor. It was later learned that pupils would return on 16 October, using only this ground floor as the rest of the building was being restored. In one school in the town, the Commission was informed, 37 civilians had taken shelter and the building came down around them; injuries were suffered and one old man and one old woman were found under the rubble at the end of the war. In Yatar, the Mayor recounted how the school had been attacked and the Lebanese Army found one unexploded missile there shortly before the school year began again.