Live updates: Follow the latest on Israel-Gaza
Israeli troops opened fire at a group of foreign diplomats outside a refugee camp in the occupied West Bank city of Jenin on Wednesday, diplomats have told The National.
Video posted online showed the panicked visitors rushing for the cover of their armoured vehicles as the shots were fired.
One of the diplomats said that about 30 missions were present, from Europe, South America and Asia. Six shots were fired "in a couple of bursts”, they said, as representatives were standing at an Israeli military barrier leading into the camp.
“We had been standing there for around 10 to 15 minutes,” the diplomat said. “There were at least 15 cars, so we were a big presence and [Palestinian] media were also there.”
"The key point is that we were all leaving [as the firing started]," the diplomat said.
Another diplomat told The National the situation was confusing. "We were finishing the trip at the entrance of the camp, and suddenly we heard shots coming from inside," they said. "We rushed to our vehicles."
Jenin has been subjected to Israel’s widespread crackdown on militants in the West Bank for months.
On January 21 – two days after a ceasefire deal with Hamas was struck in Gaza – Israeli troops descended on Jenin as they have done dozens of times since the Hamas-led attacks on Israel on October 7, 2023. The fighting has displaced tens of thousands of Palestinians, one of the largest West Bank displacements in years.
The Israeli army said that the delegation had deviated from an approved route and entered an area where they were not authorised to be.
"Soldiers operating in the area fired warning shots ... no injuries or damages were reported," the army said.
World reactions
The EU’s foreign affairs chief Kaja Kallas called on Israel to investigate the incident and hold those responsible accountable.
"Any threats on diplomats' lives are unacceptable," Ms Kallas told journalists in Brussels.
Belgium's Foreign Minister Maxime Prevot posted on X to demand an explanation from Israel, adding that the Belgian diplomat was unharmed.
Italian Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani also called on the government of Israel to immediately clarify what happened. "Threats against diplomats are unacceptable," he said on X, adding that one of the diplomats was Italian and was "well".
Mr Tajani said he instructed his ministry to summon the Israeli ambassador to Rome to obtain official clarifications on what happened in Jenin.
The Egyptian Foreign Ministry said that the incident "violates all diplomatic norms" and "demanded the Israeli side provide the necessary explanations" over the circumstances.
The German Foreign Ministry called on Israel to "promptly investigate the circumstances" of the incident, while Ireland's Deputy Prime Minister Simon Harris said he was "shocked and appalled" at reports that the Israeli army fired shots in the vicinity of the diplomats, including two from Ireland who are based in Ramallah.
Turkey said an official from the Turkish Consulate General in Jerusalem was a member of the group and condemned the shooting "in the strongest terms".
"This attack, which endangered the lives of diplomats, is yet another demonstration of Israel’s systematic disregard for international law and human rights," the Turkish Foreign Ministry said.
Spain said it would summon Israel's most senior representative. "Faced with the intolerable shooting by the Israeli army during the visit of Spanish, EU and other countries' diplomats, we are summoning the head of Israel's embassy in Madrid," Foreign Minister Jose Manuel Albares wrote on X.
The Palestinian Foreign Ministry said on X that Israeli troops opened fire from inside the Jenin refugee camp to "intimidate the diplomatic delegation that is conducting a field tour around the camp to witness the extent of the suffering endured by the residents of the area".
In a separate statement, the ministry condemned "in the strongest possible terms, the heinous crime committed by the Israeli occupation forces, which deliberately targeted by live fire an accredited diplomatic delegation to the State of Palestine during a field visit to Jenin Governorate".
The ministry said the delegation was undertaking an official mission to observe and assess the humanitarian situation, and document the continuing violations perpetrated by the occupying Israeli troops against the Palestinian people.
"This deliberate and unlawful act constitutes a blatant and grave breach of international law and of the fundamental principles of diplomatic relations as enshrined in the 1961 Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations," it said.
The ministry held the Israeli government fully responsible for "this criminal assault" and affirmed such acts will not pass without accountability.
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2002 Giselle Khoury (Colombia)
2004 Nathalie Nasralla (France)
2005 Catherine Abboud (Oceania)
2007 Grace Bijjani (Mexico)
2008 Carina El-Keddissi (Brazil)
2009 Sara Mansour (Brazil)
2010 Daniella Rahme (Australia)
2011 Maria Farah (Canada)
2012 Cynthia Moukarzel (Kuwait)
2013 Layla Yarak (Australia)
2014 Lia Saad (UAE)
2015 Cynthia Farah (Australia)
2016 Yosmely Massaad (Venezuela)
2017 Dima Safi (Ivory Coast)
2018 Rachel Younan (Australia)
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CSIL 2-star 145cm One Round with Jump-Off
1. Alice Debany Clero (USA) on Amareusa S 38.83 seconds
2. Anikka Sande (NOR) For Cash 2 39.09
3. Georgia Tame (GBR) Cash Up 39.42
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Brolliology: A History of the Umbrella in Life and Literature
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8.50pm: Handicap Dh175,000 (D) 1,400m
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9.25pm: Handicap Dh175,000 (D) 2,000m
Winner: Quartier Francois, Fernando Jara, Ali Rashid Al Raihe.
Virtuzone GCC Sixes
Date and venue Friday and Saturday, ICC Academy, Dubai Sports City
Time Matches start at 9am
Groups
A Blighty Ducks, Darjeeling Colts, Darjeeling Social, Dubai Wombats; B Darjeeling Veterans, Kuwait Casuals, Loose Cannons, Savannah Lions; C Awali Taverners, Darjeeling, Dromedary, Darjeeling Good Eggs
The Land between Two Rivers: Writing in an Age of Refugees
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Started: November 2017
Founders: Mounir Nakhla, Ahmed Mohsen and Mohamed Aboulnaga
Based: Cairo, Egypt
Sector: transport and logistics
Size: 150 employees
Investment: approximately $8 million
Investors include: Singapore’s Battery Road Digital Holdings, Egypt’s Algebra Ventures, Uber co-founder and former CTO Oscar Salazar
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- Since the start of the Gaza war, it has also included 45 Gazan beneficiaries
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The number of Chinese people living in Dubai: An estimated 200,000
Number of Chinese people in International City: Almost 50,000
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Daily visitors to Dragon Mart in 2010: 20,000
Percentage increase in visitors in eight years: 500 per cent
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UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
What is the FNC?
The Federal National Council is one of five federal authorities established by the UAE constitution. It held its first session on December 2, 1972, a year to the day after Federation.
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They bring Emirati issues to the council for debate and put those concerns to ministers summoned for questioning.
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In the 2015 elections, 78 of the 252 candidates were women. Women also represented 48 per cent of all voters and 67 per cent of the voters were under the age of 40.
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BMW X7 xDrive 50i
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Power: 462hp
Torque: 650Nm
Price: Dh600,000
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More than 2.2 million Indian tourists arrived in UAE in 2023
More than 3.5 million Indians reside in UAE
Indian tourists can make purchases in UAE using rupee accounts in India through QR-code-based UPI real-time payment systems
Indian residents in UAE can use their non-resident NRO and NRE accounts held in Indian banks linked to a UAE mobile number for UPI transactions
The specs
Engine: 3.9-litre twin-turbo V8
Power: 620hp from 5,750-7,500rpm
Torque: 760Nm from 3,000-5,750rpm
Transmission: Eight-speed dual-clutch auto
On sale: Now
Price: From Dh1.05 million ($286,000)
