FLASH
Shkruar nga Pamfleti
France, Germany and Belgium have condemned the incident and demanded an explanation.
The EU's top diplomat, Kaja Kallas, said on Wednesday that it was "unacceptable" that the Israeli army had fired near a diplomatic delegation that included European officials who were on a visit to the West Bank.
The group of diplomats was visiting a refugee camp in the Palestinian city of Jenin, but deviated from an "approved route" and "entered an area where they were not authorized to be," Israel's foreign ministry said in a statement on social media, after which Israeli troops fired "warning shots" to scare them away.
"Any threat to the lives of diplomats is unacceptable," Kallas said during a press conference, adding that even the warning shots were "unprovoked" and that those who fired them must be held "accountable."
"The IDF regrets the inconvenience caused," the Israel Defense Forces said, adding that an investigation will be conducted and the countries involved will be informed of the findings.
The diplomats included delegates from the EU, France, the United Kingdom, Italy, Canada, Russia, China and other countries, according to the Palestinian Authority, which organized the visit.
"A visit to Jenin, in which one of our diplomats was participating, was shot at by Israeli soldiers. This is unacceptable," said French Foreign Minister Jean-Noël Barrot, adding that France would summon the Israeli ambassador "to provide explanations."
Germany's Foreign Ministry strongly condemned Israel's "unprovoked bombing" in a statement and said it was a matter of luck that "nothing worse had happened." German Foreign Minister Johann Wadephul had a phone call with diplomats at the scene and would ask his Israeli counterpart to "clarify the circumstances."
Belgian Foreign Minister and Deputy Prime Minister Maxime Prévot said a Belgian diplomat was also involved in the incident. "Fortunately, he is fine," he said, adding that "Belgium demands convincing explanations from Israel."
A spokesman for the Palestinian Authority's Foreign Ministry criticized the incident as a "heinous crime committed by the Israeli occupying forces, who deliberately opened fire on an accredited diplomatic delegation."
Footage of the incident shared by the Palestinian Authority on social media shows members of the delegation running for cover as gunshots are heard.
The incident comes a day after Kallas announced that the EU would review the political and economic agreement with Israel following the latter's military offensive in Gaza and the resulting humanitarian catastrophe in the besieged coastal enclave.
Italian Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani said on social media that he had summoned the Israeli ambassador to Rome "to obtain official clarification on what happened in Jenin."
Lini një Përgjigje