William Schabas, the Canadian jurist who stepped down from the lead role in the UN Human Rights Council’s commission of inquiry into the Israel-Gaza war of 2014, said that Israel’s pre-emptive report exonerating itself of war crimes while placing the blame squarely on Hamas is no substitute for an international investigation.

In an interview with Channel 2, Schabas lamented Israel’s decision not to cooperate with UN investigators, who are due to release their findings sometime this week.

“When it suits it, Israel cooperates with commissions of inquiry,” Schabas said. “When it comes to the UN Human Rights Council and its commission of inquiry, it hasn’t cooperated. I think that’s unfortunate. I think it’s not in Israel’s best interests to boycott commissions of inquiry. It’s not a question of alternatives. It’s both.”

“It should cooperate with the international commission of inquiry, and it should also conduct the investigation itself,” he said.

Schabas brushed aside Israel’s contention that Hamas was the only party to commit war crimes during Operation Protective Edge.