Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert has defended his country’s recent 22-day offensive in the Gaza Strip, pledging to defend the Israeli military against international calls for an investigation of potential war crimes. Olmert stated that a specialised government team, led by Justice Minister Daniel Friedmann, would coordinate a legal defence if necessary.

“The soldiers and commanders who were sent on missions in Gaza must know that they are safe from various tribunals and that the state of Israel will assist them on this issue and defend them,” said Olmert. The Prime Minister further condemned the “moral acrobatics” of critics he alleged are “trying to turn the attacker into the attacked and vice versa.”

International activists and some governments have called for an inquiry into charges that Israeli soldiers employed disproportionate force and used white phosphorus munitions in dense residential areas. Amnesty International has described Israel’s use of white phosphorus as “indiscriminate” and a war crime.

Israeli officials accuse Hamas fighters of cynically using Palestinian civilians as human shields while firing rockets at Israeli communities. They insist that Israeli soldiers tried to avoid civilian casualties.

Nearly 1,300 Palestinians, most of them civilians, were killed in the assault which began on December 27. About 5,000 are thought to be wounded, and material and economic damage is estimated at nearly $2 billion. Thirteen Israelis died over the course of the conflict: three civilians from rocket attacks and ten soldiers. The Israeli military launched its assault with the stated goal of ending years of rocket attacks by Palestinian militants against southern Israel.

The unilateral cease-fires declared two weeks ago by Israel and Hamas appeared to be holding. Many Palestinians are nonetheless concerned that attacks could resume at any time. Fears persist that Israel will begin bombing the hundreds of smuggling tunnels that extend into Egypt.

Signs of an attempt to return to normality are evident in Gaza. More than 4,000 schoolchildren returned to classes last week. Administrators said they wouldn’t resume normal studies immediately, instead focusing on trauma, grief counselling, and what one Ministry of Education official referred to as “morale-boosting activities.”