EU top diplomat urges Israel to probe shots meant to warn off diplomats; official says IDF apology insufficient

Kaja Kallas, the European Union’s top diplomat, calls on Israel to investigate the incident today in which an Arab-European diplomatic delegation had warning shots fired in the air near them while touring Jenin in the West Bank.

“We definitely call on Israel to investigate this incident and also hold those accountable who are responsible for this,” says Kallas when asked about the matter at an EU-African Union press conference.

“Any threats on diplomats’ lives are unacceptable. Israel is also a signatory to the Vienna Convention — the obligation to guarantee the security of all foreign diplomats,” she adds.

A Western diplomatic official whose country was represented in the delegation calls the event “a serious incident to which we will react.”

“This is not an ‘inconvenience,’” says the official, responding to the IDF-issued apology following the event, in which the military said it “regrets the inconvenience caused” to the foreign diplomats.

“It is a serious incident to which we will react appropriately, following consultations with our partners,” says the official.

The IDF said that soldiers fired warning shots after the group did not follow an approved route that was agreed upon when the tour was coordinated with the army, since the area is an active combat zone.