Amnesty International has called for an independent investigation into war crimes in the Gaza Strip and Israel ahead of a General Assembly meeting on Goldstone report.

In an open letter to the United Nations General Assembly and the UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon, the London-based rights group reiterated its call for Israel and Hamas to immediately start independent investigations on war crimes.

The request was made a day before the General Assembly convenes to discuss a report prepared by former South African judge, Richard Goldstone, who concluded that Israel used disproportionate force and failed to protect civilians during its December-January offensive against the Palestinians in the Gaza strip.

It also accused Hamas of violating the conventions and recommended that the case be referred to the International Criminal Court at The Hague if the two sides fail to start an investigation into the crimes within six months.

The rights group also called on the UN chief to establish a committee of experts in international law to assess the effectiveness and genuineness of any accountability measures taken by the Israeli and Palestinian authorities.

Amnesty also said the General Assembly should call on Ban to submit the report to the UN Security Council.

(Press TV)