‘Tantamount to a war crime’: Arab countries slam Israel’s Jenin operation
Palestinians burn tires and wave the national flag in protest against the incursion into Jenin on July 3, 2023 along the border fence with Israel, east of Gaza City. Photo by Getty Images
This article originally appeared on Haaretz, and was reprinted here with permission. Sign up here to get Haaretz’s free Daily Brief newsletter delivered to your inbox.
Arab states issued harsh condemnations of Israel’s military operation in Jenin on Monday – which included airstrikes, exchanges of fire and ground operations that killed eight Palestinians and wounded 50, according to the Palestinian Health Ministry.
Jordan’s Foreign Ministry warned of “the catastrophic consequences of the Israeli aggression, stressing the need for the international community to move immediately and effectively to stop the aggression and provide protection for the Palestinian people” in a statement.
It added that Ayman Safadi – Jordan’s foreign minister and deputy prime minister – and Hussein al-Sheikh, secretary general of the Executive Committee of the Palestine Liberation Organization, had met to discuss and jointly condemn the Israeli move.
The Jordanian ministry also condemned the Jenin incursion in a tweet, calling on “the international community to take immediate action to stop the Israeli attacks on the occupied Palestinian territories.”
The United States, meanwhile, said that while it supports Israel’s right to defend itself, it urged Jerusalem to take all possible precautions to prevent the loss of civilian lives.
In response to a query from Haaretz, a spokesman for the U.S. National Security Council stated – in addition to noting that it was following developments closely – that “we support Israel’s security and right to defend its people against Hamas, Palestinian Islamic Jihad, and other terrorist groups.”
A State Department spokesperson told Haaretz that developments in Jenin further underscore the “urgent need” for Israeli and Palestinian security forces to work together to improve the security situation in the West Bank. The spokesperson added that it was “imperative” to take all possible precautions to prevent the loss of civilian lives.
Egypt’s Foreign Ministry issued a statement saying that it “condemns the Israeli attack on Jenin, and we demand the intervention of international parties to stop the violations and provide protection for the Palestinian people.”
The 22-member Arab League issued a statement calling the Israeli actions in Jenin “tantamount to a war crime,” and added that its actions “undermine the endeavors and attempts devoted to reviving peace.”
The Arab League statement “strongly condemned” what it said was “aggression being launched by the Israeli occupation army on Jenin,” calling on “the international community, especially the United Nations Security Council and member states to shoulder their responsibility in stopping the Israeli aggression immediately and providing protection to the Palestinian people.”
The statement went on to note that the “devastation and victimization caused by such a criminal aggression” was the result of the “use of disproportionate military force, including airstrikes against unarmed people in cities, villages and camps, as well as assaults perpetrated by settlers.”
Ahmed Aboul Gheit, the Arab League’s secretary general, tweeted that “the brutal military operation carried out by the Israeli occupation in occupied Jenin is completely condemned.”
He continued: “The bombing of cities and camps by planes, the bulldozing of houses and roads is collective punishment and revenge that will only lead to further inflammation of the situation. I appeal to the advocates of peace in the world to intervene immediately to stop this menacing and criminal behavior.”
Qatar’s Foreign Ministry declared that it “condemns in the strongest terms the repetition of the Israeli occupation’s aggression against the city of Jenin and its camp” and “considers this aggression a new episode in the ongoing series of attacks and horrific crimes against the defenseless Palestinian people.”
Qatar’s statement warned “of the fading chances of peace and the expansion of the cycle of violence due to the continuous Israeli escalation in the occupied Palestinian territories.”
It called on the international community to “act urgently to provide the necessary protection to the Palestinian people, and oblige Israel to stop its flagrant violations of international law and respect the resolutions of international legitimacy.”
The United Arab Emirates Foreign Ministry issued a statement, announcing that it “strongly condemned” the Jenin operation, while calling on Israel to “immediately stop the recurring and escalating campaigns against the Palestinian people” and to “comply with the provisions of international law and the decisions of the (United Nations) Security Council.”
The Israeli government, the UAE statement said, must refrain from taking “steps that exacerbate tensions in the occupied Palestinian territories and lead to a worsening of conditions and the expansion of the cycle of violence.”
The United Nations joined in the condemnation, with United Nations Resident and Humanitarian Coordinator for Palestine Lynn Hastings tweeting that she was “alarmed” by the scale of the “Israeli forces operation in Jenin in the occupied West Bank. Airstrikes were used in the densely populated refugee camp. Several dead and critically wounded. Access to all injured must be ensured.”
Hastings said her office was “mobilizing humanitarian partners to provide assistance.”
United Nations Special Coordinator for the Middle East Peace Process Tor Wennesland also tweeted that “the current escalation in the occupied West Bank is very dangerous.” He added that he had “been in direct contact with all relevant parties to urgently de-escalate the situation & ensure humanitarian access and delivery of necessary medical and other supplies into Jenin.”
The unrest, Wennesland noted, “comes after months of growing tension that once again reminds us of the extremely volatile & unpredictable situation across the occupied West Bank. All must ensure the civilian population is protected.”
The Iranian government lost no time weighing in, with Foreign Ministry spokesman Nasser Kanaani describing the Jenin operation as a “reckless crime and a prominent measure of state terrorism,” vowing that “the Zionist entity will be defeated this time as well.”
In a press conference, Kanani said that “The continuing crimes of the Zionist entity have proven once again that normalization with the Zionist entity will not stop the Zionist killing machine, nor will it deter it or affect it,” according to a report in Al Jazeera.
Later in the day, the Biden White House confirmed on Monday that it is “closely monitoring the situation” in Jenin following Israel’s military anti-terror operation.
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