Dear friends,

The Goldstone Report, which examined the conduct of the IDF and Hamas during “Operation Cast Lead” in early 2009, remains front page news in Israel and across the world. As the Netanyahu government deliberates its possible courses of action following the publication of the Report, IDI is devoting significant time and attention to the Report’s details and its implications for international law, Israeli policy, and the global struggle against terrorism.

In addition to a summary of a roundtable discussion that took place at IDI in late October, this special edition of the Israel Democracy Update includes a summary of the Goldstone Report, an article on the history of investigative committees in Israel, a Jerusalem Post article dealing with IDI’s roundtable debate, a webcast (in Hebrew) of IDI's roundtable debate, an op-ed on Israel’s obligations in light of the Report’s findings, and a report on the recent events surrounding the Report.

Behind the scenes, the Institute is active in shaping the legal conditions in which future wars will be fought. IDI's International Study Group on Terrorism, Democracy and the Law was formed to address many of the difficult issues raised by the Report, including the need to revise domestic and international law so as to enable democracies to contend with the new threats posed by international terrorism. The inaugural meeting of this group of world experts--a collaborative effort of IDI, the Woodrow Wilson Center, and the Max Planck Institute--will take place in Freiburg, Germany on December 7th, 2009. The group's main objective is to develop proposals for a legal framework that will enable democracies to confront terrorism effectively within the rule of law.

We hope you find this special edition of IDI’s monthly newsletter informative and thank you for your continued interest in IDI.

Warm regards from Jerusalem,

Barak Cohen
The Israel Democracy Institute
Barak@idi.org.il