Israeli soldiers fire near Irish diplomats on visit to occupied West Bank
Reuters
Two Irish diplomats were among the delegation that Israeli soldiers fired near in the occupied West Bank.
The diplomats were part of a group of European officials visiting the West Bank city of Jenin.
The Israeli military claimed "the delegation deviated from the approved route and entered an area where they were not authorised to be" and that soldiers fired "warning shots to distance them away."
No injuries or damage were reported, the military said.
Taoiseach Micheál Martin condemned it as an "aggressive, intimidatory and violent act" and said he was thankful that nobody was killed or injured.
"This is not and must never be a normal way to behave," Mr Martin said in a statement.
"We, and the international community, will be demanding answers from Israel on exactly how this came to happen and will seek assurances that this will never happen again.
"Diplomats play a very important and vital role representing countries. They should be enabled to go about their work in an unimpeded manner and should never fear becoming targets."
Tánaiste and Minister for Foreign Affairs Simon Harris said he was "shocked and appalled" at the incident.
"This is completely unacceptable and I condemn it in the strongest terms," he wrote on X.
The EU's foreign policy chief, Kaja Kallas, said she had heard about the incident which happened on a visit by diplomats organised by the Palestinian Authority.
"We definitely call on Israel to investigate this incident and also held these accountable who are responsible for this and any threats on diplomats' lives," she said.
The Spanish foreign ministry said a Spaniard was among the group of diplomats, who was unhurt.
"We are in contact with other affected countries to jointly coordinate a response to what happened, which we strongly condemn," it said in a statement.
Italian foreign minister Antonio Tajani said on X that Israel's ambassador to Rome would be summoned to explain.
Footage on Israeli television showed individuals running to vehicles with diplomatic license plates as shots were heard in the distance.
The Palestinian Authority's foreign ministry said "the delegation was undertaking an official mission to observe and assess the humanitarian situation and document the ongoing violations perpetrated by" Israel. The ministry called the Israeli military's actions a violation of international law.
The Israeli military has killed dozens of Palestinians and destroyed many homes in the West Bank since it launched an operation in January in the city of Jenin to root out militants.
