The final report released on 15 September 2009 by the United Nations Fact Finding Mission on the Gaza Conflict. The mission, chaired by South African legal expert Richard Goldstone, was mandated by the UN Human Rights Council to investigate possible human rights violations conducted by Israel during the 2008-9 Gaza War, known in Israel as Operation Cast Lead. The mandate was later expanded to also include human rights abuses conducted by Hamas and other Palestinian militant organizations. Israel refused to cooperate with the work of the mission, which it saw as inherently biased. The report found that both sides had committed war crimes and possibly crimes against humanity, as Israel had used disproportionate force during the conflict, deliberately targeting civilians and civilian infrastructure, while Palestinian militant organizations carried out indiscriminate attacks against Israeli civilians. It called on both sides to independently investigate the reported human rights violations, recommending that the Security Council refer the case to the International Criminal Court if the investigations are not carried out. In 2011, Goldstone personally retracted some of the report's conclusions, a move which was rejected by the other members of the mission.