“We are appalled at the brazen killing by Israeli border police yesterday of two Palestinian men in Jenin,” UN rights office spokesman Jeremy Laurence told reporters in Geneva, calling the incident “yet another apparent summary execution”.
He said UN rights chief Volker Turk was calling for “independent, prompt and effective investigations into the killings of Palestinians”, and for those responsible for killings and other violations in the West Bank to “be held fully to account”.
In a joint statement, the Israeli military and police — which oversees the border guard unit — said they attempted to apprehend “wanted individuals who had carried out terror activities, including hurling explosives and firing at security forces”.
Israel’s far-right National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir backed the forces who opened fire, saying: “Terrorists must die!”
The UN rights office spokesman said the incident came as “killings of Palestinians by Israeli security forces and settlers in the occupied West Bank have been surging, without accountability, even in the rare cases when investigations are announced”. –Agencies
