German Foreign Minister, Annalena Baerbock has urged Israel to refrain from its military offensive in the occupied West Bank.
This came as she made comments after meeting her Israeli counterpart, Israel Katz in Tel Aviv.
“Some members of the Israeli government demand a Gaza-like action in the West Bank, this is precisely what would seriously endanger Israel’s security,” she told reporters.
Baerbock criticised inflammatory statements from Israel’s right-wing Ministers, their calls to topple the Palestinian Authority, and plans to build new settlements in the occupied Palestinian territory.
“Some in the Israeli government claim that the strengthening of the Palestinian Authority means rewarding terrorism. But as the EU, as Germany, we are trying to strengthen the Palestinian Authority, that is exactly what we are doing.
“We are doing this because we are deeply convinced that only with credible steps toward a Palestinian state, with reforming and strengthening the Palestinian Authority, Israel’s security can be secured and terrorism can be fought.”
Annalena Baerbock
The Palestinian Foreign Ministry has accused Israel of taking the “brutal crimes” committed in Gaza to the occupied West Bank.
It called on the international community to act in accordance with the principles it claims to uphold, including the protection of human rights.
In a statement, the ministry said that the raids conducted in Jenin and Tulkarem were “a clear targeting of Palestinian civilians and the foundations of their national and human existence on their homeland.”
Israeli forces appeared to have withdrawn from three refugee camps in the West Bank after a more-than-weeklong military operation that left dozens dead and a trail of destruction.
Israel says the large-scale raids in the territory were aimed at dismantling militant groups and preventing attacks. Palestinians fear a widening of the war in Gaza.
After completing a 10-day raid in the occupied West Bank city of Jenin, Israel’s military claimed to have killed 14 fighters, including the regional leader of Hamas.
However, Hassan Barari, international relations professor at Qatar University stated that Israel’s real objective in Jenin was not simply to target Hamas fighters, but to “wreak havoc on the Palestinians”, making the city even more “difficult to live in.”
“The right-wing members [of Israel’s government] … think they can apply the same model [as Gaza] in the West Bank,” Barari told a news agency.
He added, “They are trying to Gaza-ify the West Bank.”
Israel To ‘Respond Forcefully’ To Killing Of Captives
Israeli Foreign Minister, Israel Katz told his German counterpart during a meeting in Tel Aviv that Israel will “respond forcefully to the execution of our hostages by Hamas.”
“No country in the world wants a deal for the release of the hostages more than Israel, and as the US has made clear, Hamas is the obstacle to the deal,” Katz told Baerbock, according to Israeli media.
Katz also stated that “the root of terror in Israel lies in Iran” and “poses a threat to, not just Israel, but to Europe and the entire world.”
He accused Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei of wanting to arm the occupied West Bank “just as he armed Gaza”.
Meanwhile, the US secretary of state, Antony Blinken has urged both Israel and Hamas to agree on remaining issues so a ceasefire in Gaza can be reached.
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