None of this is intended to suggest that Israel is somehow above the law or should not be held responsible for any violations of human rights or international humanitarian norms. The problem is that Israel is systematically denied equality before the law in the international arena. Israel must respect human rights, but the rights of Israel deserve equal respect. Simply put, human rights standards should be applied to Israel, but must be equally applied to all others, without the exculpatory immunity that major human rights violators – such as Hamas – currently enjoy.

Unacceptably, the recent UN resolution ignores the fundamental distinction between a terrorist organization – indeed a terrorist government, like Hamas – committed to maximizing civilian casualties, both Israeli and Palestinian, and a democratic government that seeks to minimize Palestinian casualties while taking necessary measures to defend its own citizens in accordance with international law.

Regrettably, this prejudicial and pernicious UN decision – let alone the prospective one-sided commission of inquiry – will only encourage Hamas criminality, with Israeli and Palestinian civilians themselves as the tragic victims.

Irwin Cotler is a Member of the Canadian Parliament, and the former Minister of Justice and Attorney General of Canada. He is emeritus professor of law at McGill University in Montreal, has written extensively on war crimes law, and initiated the first prosecution under Canada's War Crimes and Crimes Against Humanity Act.

The UN, Hamas, and Alice in Wonderland