UN Secretary General Urges Israel To Immediately End Military Operations In The West Bank

UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres. (Wikimedia Commons/IAEA Imagebank)

UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres urged Israel to immediately end a large-scale military offensive in the occupied West Bank, after 11 Palestinians were killed and several others injured.

Secretary General Guterres strongly condemned "the loss of life, including children," and called for "the immediate cessation of this operation."

The secretary general "asked Israel to comply with its relevant obligations under international humanitarian law and take action to protect civilians and ensure their safety. He urged security forces to exercise maximum restraint and use lethal force only if absolutely unavoidable to protect lives," his spokesman Stephane Dujarric said in a statement. a statement, reported Anadolu August 29.

Secretary General Guterres stressed that those injured "must have access to medical care and humanitarian workers should be able to reach everyone in need."

"This dangerous development has triggered a situation that has exploded in the occupied West Bank and further weakens the Palestinian Authority," Dujarric said.

"In the end, only the end of the occupation and return to a meaningful political process that will build a solution for two countries that will end violence. The United Nations will continue to work with all parties to achieve this goal, to seek de-escalation of the current situation and improve stability in the region," he added.

Israel's military campaign this time in the West Bank was the largest since 2002, when the Second Intifada. Attacks have taken place in the north of occupied territories, including in the provinces of Nablus, Tulkarem, Jenin, and Tubas.

In the latest attack, Israel used two brigades of soldiers, helicopters, unmanned aircraft, and bulldozers, Israel's daily Yedioth Ahronoth said.