A wave of international condemnations and diplomatic summons flowed on Wednesday after Israeli troops fired warning shots near a group of diplomats from nearly two dozen countries as they were touring the West Bank city of Jenin with the Palestinian Authority earlier in the day.
Videos showed diplomats running for cover after soldiers on a road blocked off by a large yellow gate aimed rifles and fired shots in the air near the group. No injuries were reported in the confrontation, which involved diplomats from Britain, Canada, France, China, Russia and the European Union, among others, according to the Palestinian Authority foreign ministry.
The military later apologized for the incident, which it said occurred because the group “strayed from a preapproved route,” saying that “the IDF regrets the inconvenience caused.”
But the apology failed to mollify the countries whose diplomats came under fire.
Kaja Kallas, the European Union’s top diplomat, called on Israel to investigate the incident and to “hold those accountable who are responsible for this.”
“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 added.
A Western diplomatic official whose country was represented in the delegation called the event “a serious incident to which we will react.”
“This is not an ‘inconvenience,’” said the official. “It is a serious incident to which we will react appropriately, following consultations with our partners.”
In response to the incident, Italy’s Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani summoned the Israeli ambassador “to obtain official clarifications on what happened in Jenin.”
Tajani said earlier he had spoken to Alessandro Tutino, the deputy consul general of Italy in Jerusalem, “who is well and who was among the diplomats who were apparently shot at near the Jenin refugee camp.”
“We call on the government of Israel to immediately clarify what happened. Threats against diplomats are unacceptable,” he said on X.
France’s foreign minister, Jean-Noel Barrot, also said on Wednesday that he would summon the Israeli ambassador to explain, calling the incident “unacceptable.”
Germany “strongly condemned” the incident, with their foreign ministry spokeswoman saying that “the Israeli government must promptly investigate the circumstances” of the “unprovoked shooting.”
“The independent observer role of diplomats on the ground is indispensable and in no way poses a threat to Israeli security interests,” the spokeswoman added.
The German diplomat was accompanied by a driver, and both were from the country’s Ramallah representative office, the ministry said.
Portugal said it had summoned the Israeli ambassador “following this incident, which calls international law into question.”
Belgium demanded a “convincing explanation” from Israel, while Spain said it was “in contact with other affected countries to jointly coordinate a response to what happened, which we strongly condemn.”
Egypt said the incident “violates all diplomatic norms.”
Turkey demanded an immediate investigation, saying “this attack must be investigated without delay and the perpetrators must be held accountable,” adding that “an employee of the Turkish consulate in Jerusalem” was with the group.
Ahmad al-Deek, political adviser for the Palestinian Authority’s foreign ministry, who accompanied the delegation, condemned “this reckless act by the Israeli army.”
“It had given the diplomatic delegation an impression of the life the Palestinian people are living,” he said.
According to the Israeli military, the incident occurred when the delegation left the route agreed upon in coordination with the army “due to the area being an active combat zone.”
The group “deviated from the route and entered an area where they were not authorized to be,” the army said, confirming that troops stationed there fired warning shots in the air, causing no damage or injuries.
Army Radio quoted an Israeli defense official saying that the soldiers who fired in the air were unaware of the identity of the group that approached the gate, and had sought to warn them away.
The IDF said the commander of the West Bank division, Brig. Gen. Yaki Dolf, immediately launched an inquiry into the incident once it became clear that the group approaching the gate was the foreign diplomats.
Brig. Gen. Hisham Ibrahim, the head of the Civil Administration — a Defense Ministry body that is part of COGAT — ordered officers in the unit to immediately speak with representatives of the countries involved.
“He will soon hold personal conversations with the diplomats to update them on the findings of the initial inquiry,” the IDF said.
The incident came days after the UK, France and Canada issued a sharply worded joint statement Monday calling the amount of aid being permitted to enter Gaza “wholly inadequate,” and threatening “concrete actions” against Israel, including sanctions, for its activities in Gaza and the occupied West Bank.
On Tuesday, the UK suspended free trade talks with Israel over its intensifying assault on Gaza and issued a fresh round of sanctions against West Bank settlers.
Separately, European Union foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas said the bloc was reviewing an EU pact governing trade ties with Israel over its conduct of the war in Gaza.