Guterres: UN won’t send int’l force to protect Palestinians in West Bank

The United Nations doesn’t plan to send an international force to the West Bank to protect Palestinians, UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres told reporters in New York on Thursday.

“I don’t think it's realistic to think we can have a military force sent” there, Guterres said, adding that he didn’t think the Israeli government “would consent” to that.

“But a mechanism must be found to allow for the protection of civilians in these dramatic circumstances,” Guterres said.

He spoke just one day after Israel finished its two-day military campaign in the West Bank Palestinian city of Jenin. 

Some 12 Palestinians were killed during the raid, five of whom were minors. The army has said they were all militants, while the Palestinians argued that some of them were innocent bystanders. According to the UN, some 3,500 Palestinians were temporarily displaced as a result of the violence.

Violence in Jenin

Guterres condemned the IDF’s raid on Jenin calling it “the worst violence in the West Bank in many years.”

He called on Israel “to abide by its obligations under international law, including the duty to exercise restraint and use only proportional force, and the duty to minimize damage and injury and respect and preserve human life.”

He took issue with Israel’s use of armed drones stating that it was “inconsistent with the conduct of law enforcement operations.” 

He recalled that Israel had military control of the West Bank and thus had a responsibility to protect the civilian population there. 

“I understand Israel’s legitimate concerns with its security.  But escalation is not the answer.  It simply bolsters radicalization and leads to a deepening cycle of violence and bloodshed,” he said.

The United Nations Security Council is scheduled to hold closed-door consultations on Friday about the Jenin raid.

The White House said that US officials had been in touch with their Israeli counterparts over Jenin as it urged Israel to protect civilians and restore utilities in that West Bank city.

“We are monitoring things very closely,” White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre told reporters.

“Israel is a close ally and partner, and we are in touch with the national security and, certainly, the defense officials,” she said. “We support, certainly, Israel’s security and right to defend its people against Hamas, Palestinian Islamic Jihad, and other terrorist groups,” Jean-Pierre said.

She underscored, however, that “It is imperative” for Israel to “take all possible steps to protect civilians from harm, and measures need to be taken to improve the humanitarian situation on the ground and restore critical services like electricity and water to the civilian population.”

A number of United States politicians have spoken out strongly in support of Israel’s two-day campaign to destroy terrorist infrastructure in the West Bank Palestinian city of Jenin this week, which the IDF has called Operation Home and Garden.

Senator Rick Scott (R-FL) tweeted, “These attacks from Hamas terrorists in Jenin are for one purpose: to harm and kill innocent Israelis. The @IDF is countering these terror activities daily to stop attacks.

“The acts of these vicious Hamas killers show how important American support of Israel is in the fight against terror, and reiterate the critical need for advanced weapons systems like Israel’s Iron Dome,” he wrote.

Representative Josh Gottheimer (D–NJ) tweeted that Iran is behind the Palestinian terrorist groups in Jenin. “The Iranian threat is not miles away from Israel’s borders, in fact, it is right at the Jewish state’s doorstep [and] embedded into aspects of Palestinian society.

“Tehran [and] its proxies disrupt stability across the world, and the latest discoveries in the West Bank are frightening. “Iran, the world’s leading state sponsor of terrorism, helped stockpile explosive devices, rocket parts, rifles, and ammunition in Jenin. The regime’s goal is to wipe Israel and Israelis off the map,” he explained.

“I am closely following the situation in the region and stand with Israel as it defends itself from terrorists.”

US Representative Ilhan Omar (D-MN) condemned the IDF raid on Jenin, stating that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu was “openly promising to crush Palestinian hopes for statehood, days after the Jenin massacre.

“How long will we continue to fund Netanyahu’s human rights abuses with zero strings attached? How long will we allow him to make peace impossible with no consequences?” she asked.

Reuters contributed to this report.