Amnesty International has accused both Israel and the militant Palestinian group Hamas of war crimes during the recent conflict and said there is evidence that both sides used weapons sourced from overseas to carry out attacks on civilians, dpa reported.
A report by the London-based human rights group released Monday called on the United Nations (UN) Security Council to impose an arms embargo on all parties.
Israel is accused of the illegal use of white phosphorus and other armaments supplied by the US in Gaza, while Hamas is condemned for launching unguided rockets into Israel.
"Israeli attacks resulted in the death of hundreds of children and other civilians and massive destruction of homes and infrastructure," said Donatella Rovera, the head of an Amnesty fact-finding mission to Gaza.
"Israeli forces used white phosphorus and other weapons supplied by the USA to carry out serious violations of international humanitarian law, including war crimes," she said.
"At the same time, Hamas and other Palestinian armed groups fired hundreds of rockets that had been smuggled in or made of components from abroad at civilian areas in Israel," the report continues.
"Though far less lethal than the weaponry used by Israel, such rocket firing also constitutes a war crime and caused several civilian deaths," said the report.
Both Israel and Hamas have rejected the allegations, according to the BBC.
Israeli government spokesman Mark Regev told the BBC: "The IDF, the Israeli Defence Forces, only use weapons that are in accordance with international law. We did not use any such munition as an anti-personnel weapon; we are investigating ourselves."
According to Rovera, the group found fragments and components of artillery, tank shells, fins from mortar rounds and aircraft-launched missiles and bombs in school playgrounds, hospitals and homes in Gaza.
Israel's weaponry predominantly came from the US, the report said.
In southern Israel, meanwhile, the remains of rockets fired indiscriminately at civilian areas by Hamas and other armed Palestinian groups were also recovered, the report said.
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