Netanyahu 'has approached US lawmakers to help avoid war crimes charges'

Israel has consistently maintained that its military strikes on Gaza, some of which have resulted in civilian deaths, have been in self-defence against rocket attacks from terrorist group Hamas.However, Palestinian officials are thought to be considering joining the International Criminal Court (ICC) in a bid to have Israel investigated.Netanyahu met with a delegation of US politicians – including Democrat Steve Israel - to discuss ways of keeping the spotlight off its actions in Gaza, according to theNew York Post.US-Israeli relations were also on the agenda, the paper reported.Israel said: 'The prime minister asked us to work together to ensure that this strategy of going to the ICC does not succeed.Netanyahu told a press conference: 'Israel deeply regrets every civilian casualty. We do not target them. The tragedy of Gaza is that it is ruled by Hamas. They want civilian casualties, they use them as PR fodder.'Indeed, Hamas has adopted a strategy that uses and sacrifices Gaza's civilians. They fire rockets from schools, mosques, urban neighborhoods, right next to schools, right next to where journalists are staying.'He then asked: 'Imagine your territory was infiltrated by death squads. What would you do?'Nick Clegg, Britain's Deputy Prime Minister, said he believed Israel has every right to defend itself from rocket attacks by Hamas – but that its operation had 'overstepped the mark'.He described recent strikes on three UN schools in Gaza as 'outrageous'.Palestinian officials say nearly 1,900 Palestinians have been killed in the month-long fighting, three-quarters of them civilians, according to the United Nations. Israel says some 900 Palestinian militants were among the dead. Sixty-four Israeli soldiers and three civilians in Israel have also been killed.One of the triggers for the current round of Israeli-Hamas confrontations was the abduction and killing of three Israeli teens in the West Bank in June, which Israel blamed on Hamas. Israel subsequently carried out a massive ground operation in the West Bank, arresting hundreds of Hamas operatives as part of a manhunt. And in early July, an Arab teenager was abducted and burned alive by Israeli extremists in an apparent revenge attack. Six Jewish Israelis were arrested in that killing. Also, militants in Gaza unleashed barrages of rocket fire on Israel.(dailymail.co.uk)Bakudaily.Az