Condemnations of Israeli offensive in West Bank pour in
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The Arab League and several countries strongly condemn the recent Israeli offensive against the occupied West Bank and warn it could further escalate tensions.
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Israeli soldiers during a raid in the Nur Shams camp near the city of Tulkarm in the West Bank on August 28, 2024. (AFP)
Arab League Secretary-General Ahmad Aboul-Gheit strongly condemned on Wednesday the Israeli occupation’s offensive in the occupied West Bank, which claimed the lives of more than eleven Palestinians.
Israeli occupation forces launched an aggression, that is expected to be the largest in 22 years, on several governorates in the occupied West Bank late on Tuesday night.
The Israeli military command said that its forces had initiated a "wide-scale operation" in the governates of Tulkarm and Jenin, targeting Palestinian Resistance fighters. In detail, the aggression targets the Jenin, al-Far'a, and Nur Shams refugee camps, in Jenin, Tubas, and Tulkarm respectively.
In a statement issued by the Arab League, Aboul-Gheit criticized the violent assaults and killings carried out by Israeli occupation forces in the northern West Bank, as well as the destruction of infrastructure and the siege of hospitals.
He described these actions as a dangerous escalation aimed at subjugating the Palestinian people and undermining previously signed agreements.
Aboul-Gheit accused the Israeli occupation of waging a campaign of extermination against Palestinians across all territories, emphasizing that the ongoing operation in the occupied West Bank is unrelated to the events of October 7. Instead, he argued, the true objective is to render life unlivable for Palestinians in both the West Bank and the Gaza Strip, through continuous acts of intimidation and bloodshed.
The Arab League Secretary-General called on the international community to take immediate action, warning that this escalation threatens to push the region to the brink of catastrophe, igniting new wars and leading to further instability.
Aboul-Gheit also held Washington accountable for the continuation of Israeli aggression, urging the US to adopt a clear stance on the recent military operations in the West Bank.
Egypt denounces Israeli raids in northern West Bank
Egypt has also issued a strong condemnation of the Israeli military incursions into the northern West Bank cities of Jenin, Tulkarm, and Tubas.
In a statement released by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Immigration, Egypt described the Israeli attacks on Palestinian civilians in the West Bank as a deliberate and systematic breach of international law, including international humanitarian law and the four Geneva Conventions, which are intended to safeguard the rights of people under occupation.
The Egyptian government also denounced "Israel's" ongoing escalation and broadening of confrontations within Palestinian territories. It called for a unified and effective international response to protect the Palestinian people, halt the targeting of unarmed civilians, and address the imposition of restrictions and seizure of private property.
The statement further warned of the grave risks associated with the continued Israeli operations, particularly the intentional targeting of Palestinian civilians.
PLO denounces Israeli aggression, urges international response
On his part, Hussein al-Sheikh, Secretary-General of the Executive Committee of the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO), condemned the ongoing Israeli aggression in the northern occupied West Bank and the Gaza Strip.
He called for immediate and urgent intervention by the international community to halt the series of attacks and protect the Palestinian people in both regions. Al-Sheikh warned that the occupation’s actions in the West Bank and its war on Gaza could further escalate tensions and worsen the situation, urging the United States to take swift action.
Al-Sheikh noted that President of the Palestinian Authority Mahmoud Abbas has cut short his visit to Saudi Arabia following the start of the Israeli military offensive against Palestinians in the northern West Bank. He affirmed that Abbas is actively working to end the aggression in both the West Bank and Gaza and has instructed relevant authorities to address the immediate needs of the Palestinian people.
Jordan warns of grave situation in West Bank
Similarly, Jordan's King Abdullah II issued a warning on Wednesday about the grave situation in the West Bank and urged a "more effective American position to stop the humanitarian catastrophe" in the Gaza Strip.
Speaking to a delegation of US Congress members at al-Husseiniya Palace in Amman, the King "warned of the seriousness of developments in the West Bank."
He also pointed out the attacks by settlers and extremists against Palestinians and the violations against Islamic and Christian holy sites in al-Quds, which he warned could escalate violence.
King Abdullah II called for the United States to take a stronger role in addressing the humanitarian disaster in Gaza and to work "to find a political horizon to achieve a just and comprehensive peace based on the two-state solution."
Turkey urges international accountability
In the same vein, the Turkish Ministry of Foreign Affairs said it strongly condemns "the illegal operation launched by Israel in the West Bank and the statement by the Israeli Foreign Minister that they will extend the practices in Gaza to the West Bank."
The Israeli news website Maariv reported that the Israeli occupation's foreign minister, Israel Katz, proclaimed that the threat in the West Bank should be addressed similarly to Gaza.
Katz said the offensive includes the "temporary evacuation of Palestinian residents" from areas in the northern West Bank.
Ankara criticized the Netanyahu government's "genocidal policy" toward the Palestinian people as a serious threat to international security. It also emphasized the need for punitive and coercive measures against Israeli actions, which blatantly disregard international law.
Israeli offensive risks deepening 'catastrophic' West Bank situation: UN
In addition, the United Nations underscored that the Israeli offensive in the occupied West Bank "risks seriously deepening the already catastrophic situation" in the Palestinian territory.
Israel's operations in the cities "and the killing of at least nine Palestinians, two of them reportedly children, take the overall death toll in the West Bank since October 7 to 637," UN Human Rights Office spokeswoman Ravina Shamdasani mentioned in a statement.
"This represents the highest number of fatalities over a period of eight months since the UN first started recording casualties in the West Bank two decades ago," she highlighted.
"Many children have been killed while throwing stones at highly protected Israeli security forces, as have other Palestinians posing no imminent threat to life or serious injury," Shamdasani pointed out.
"Such unnecessary or disproportionate use of force and the increase in apparent targeted and other summary killings are alarming."
She said thousands of Palestinians had been arbitrarily arrested and tortured, subjected to unrelenting settler violence, severe restrictions on movement and expression, their homes and property destroyed or seized, and forcibly displaced.
"Israel, as the occupying power, must abide by its obligations under international law," the UN official asserted.
Elsewhere, Shamdasani indicated that "the Israeli security forces' use of airstrikes and other military weapons and tactics violates human rights norms and standards applicable to law enforcement operations."
Moreover, the European Union's foreign policy chief, Josep Borrell, also stressed that the Israeli offensive in the occupied West Bank "must not constitute the premises of a war extension from Gaza," including large-scale destruction.
He warned against the comparison drawn by Katz, particularly regarding the evacuation of Palestinian residents, warning that it "threatens to fuel further instability."
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