France on Monday deemed "
unacceptable
" the violence against Palestinian civilians in the occupied West Bank, after reprisals by Israeli settlers targeting a city where two Israelis had been killed.
“
France strongly condemns the attack which claimed the lives of two Israelis on February 26.
Violence against Palestinian civilians is unacceptable
,” the French foreign ministry said in a statement.
Paris "
is following with the greatest concern the violence in progress in the West Bank, in particular in Huwara, which threatens to degenerate out of control
", insists the Quai d'Orsay.
“
France calls on all parties to avoid fueling this violence and contribute to de-escalation.
and “
calls on the Israeli government, as part of its responsibility as the occupying power, to protect Palestinian civilians and prosecute the perpetrators of the violence
”.
The Palestinian town of Huwara in the occupied West Bank was attacked Sunday night by dozens of Israeli settlers after two of them were killed by Palestinian gunfire, in what the government called a "Palestinian terror attack
"
.
They threw stones at Palestinian homes, set fire to buildings, garbage cans and cars, noted an AFP journalist.
The Israeli authorities called on the settlers to calm down after this new episode of violence.
The conflict is escalating sharply and officials on both sides pledged at a Sunday meeting in Jordan to "
prevent any further violence
".
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Berlin considers it "urgent" to avoid an escalation in a "tense" situation
The German government declared on Monday "
urgent
" to avoid an escalation in a "
tense
" situation in the West Bank.
“
It is urgent that the agreements to avoid an escalation are respected and that everyone now commits not to inflame an already very tense situation
,” said Christofer Burger, spokesman for the German Foreign Ministry, during the meeting. a regular press briefing.
Condemning "
with the greatest firmness the attack against two young Israelis in the occupied territories of the West Bank
", this spokesman also considered "
totally unacceptable
" the reprisal operations of the settlers in the Palestinian town of Huwara, in the occupied West Bank.
Christopher Burger hailed the calls for calm from the Israeli authorities against the settlers.
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“Let the security forces accomplish their mission”
“
I ask you, even if the blood is still hot and the spirits are heated, not to take justice into your own hands, but to let the security forces accomplish their mission,
” Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said in a statement. a video released by his office.
In a statement released on Monday, mayors of settlements called on their residents to let the Israeli army “
win
”.
"
We do not take justice into our own hands
", they wrote, calling on the authorities to carry out "
a deterrent military operation
".
Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas accused Israel of "
protecting terrorist acts perpetrated by settlers
" in this area of the West Bank, Palestinian territory occupied by the Jewish state since 1967. The army has multiplied for almost a year in the northern West Bank the operations presented as "
anti-terrorist
".
On Wednesday, eleven Palestinians were killed in Nablus in the Israeli army's deadliest military incursion into the West Bank since at least 2005.
Since the beginning of the year, the Israeli-Palestinian conflict has claimed the lives of 63 Palestinians (including members of armed groups and civilians including minors) and eleven civilians (including three minors and settlers) and one policeman Israelis as well as a Ukrainian, according to an AFP count compiled from official Israeli and Palestinian sources.
At a Sunday meeting in Aqaba, Jordan, senior Israeli and Palestinian security officials "
reaffirmed the need to engage in de-escalation on the ground and prevent further violence
."
US White House National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan welcomed the Aqaba meeting while stressing "there will
be a lot of work to do in the weeks and months to come, in order to build a stable future." and prosperous for Israelis and Palestinians alike
.”