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UN details Israeli human rights abuses in Gaza

The United Nations has ramped up pressure on Israel by issuing a raft of reports in which it formally accuses the Jewish State of committing war crimes during its 23-day war in the Gaza Strip.

Among the most damning allegations, compiled by nine UN human rights experts, is a report that IDF soldiers used an 11-year-old Palestinian boy as a human shield after coming under sniper fire in Tel al-Hawa.

The investigators also accused Israel of targeting civilians in an effort to minimise troop casualties, echoing recent accounts from several soldiers which suggested that civilian lives were taken wantonly.

Amnesty report: Israel guilty of war crimes

Amnesty International has accused Israel of committing war crimes during its recent 23-day assault of the Gaza Strip.

The group said white phosphorus was dropped by IDF aircraft on built-up civilian areas, contravening the rules laid down in the Geneva Convention about use of incendiary devices.

It also blamed the Jewish State's main ally, America, for supplying many of the weapons used during the conflict, and called on US president Barack Obama to halt military cooperation between the two countries.

US steps up pressure on Israel over war crimes

America's new envoy to the UN has told Israel to investigate allegations that it violated international law during its recent assault on the Gaza Strip.

A shift in tempo had been widely expected after the apparent favouritism of former president George Bush, who was criticised for his unwillingness to restrain the Jewish state over the course of its bloody 23-day war.

Making her debut speech before the UN Security Council, US ambassador Susan Rice set the new mood by saying that while some allegations lacked credibility, others had more substance and must be investigated.

BBC boycott 'raised awareness of Gaza appeal'

The BBC has been accused of hypocrisy after its refusal to air a humanitarian appeal for the Gaza Strip dramatically boosted the campaign's prime-time TV exposure.

Britain's state broadcaster declined to air the Disasters Emergency Committee (DEC) appeal, citing a commitment to impartiality. It was subsequently joined in its boycott by rival Sky News.

But according to airtime figures collated by riverScrap.com, the move actually resulted in all four of the UK's main terrestrial networks devoting additional DEC coverage to their prime-time news schedules.

Crunch time nears for Africa's biggest embarassment?

The iron-fisted rule of Robert Mugabe may be nearing its closing stages, media reports suggest, as the tide slowly turns against this dastardly and brutal ruler.

Propped up by his loyal band of thugs and yes-men, Mr Mugabe has succeeded in turning "the breadbasket of Africa" into one of the deepest humanitarian scars on the continent.

But with a new outbreak of cholera highlighting the lethal consequences of his mismanagement, many of Zimbabwe's allies - most notably China - appear finally to be turning their backs on this ugly dictator.