Hezbollah is organizing lawsuits against Israel seeking reparations for damage caused during the summer 2006 Lebanon conflict. Hezbollah legal affairs director Ibrahim Awada told Syrian media last week that Hezbollah will pay legal fees to facilitate lawsuits filed by Lebanese citizens with multiple-citizenships in third-party states. Hezbollah says the move was necessary because Lebanese officials were reluctant to pursue claims against Israel .In July, Amnesty International condemned both Israel and Hezbollah for failing to investigate alleged war crimes that occurred during the conflict. AI also criticized the UN Security Council for its inaction and faulted the UN Human Rights Council for conducting a one-sided inquiry focusing only on alleged violations by Israel. In November, the UN rights body characterized the Israeli use of force in Lebanon as "excessive, indiscriminate, and disproportionate" and in "flagrant violation" of international law.
The Lebanese government began mulling lawsuits against Israel immediately after the war ended last summer, but was stymied by the fact that United Nations Security Council Resolution 1701, which ended the war, blamed Hezbollah, rather than Israel, for its outbreak. The government therefore set up a legal committee to explore more limited options, such as suits specifically over Israel's use of cluster bombs and destruction of infrastructure.