Israel summons UN envoy over demanding probe into Palestinian killing

JERUSALEM (AA) – Israel has summoned the UN envoy to the Middle East, Tor Wennesland, following his tweets expressing concern over the brutal killing of a Palestinian in the occupied West Bank.

The Israeli Foreign Ministry said Wennesland was summoned to its headquarters for “clarification”.

The move came after the UN envoy called for an investigation into the shooting of a Palestinian by Israeli forces in the West Bank town of Huwara last week.

On Friday, Palestinian activists shared a video on social media of an Israeli soldier scuffling with a young man in Huwara town, south of Nablus city.

As the young man — who was identified as Ammar Mifleh — tried to escape, the Israeli soldier shot him at point blank, leaving him badly injured. The Palestinian was later pronounced dead.

“Horrified by today’s killing of a Palestinian man, Ammar Mifleh, during a scuffle with an Israeli soldier near Huwara in the occupied West Bank,” Wennesland tweeted.

“My heartfelt condolences to his bereaved family. Such incidents must be fully and promptly investigated, and those responsible held accountable,” he added.

Israel, however, strongly disapproved of the envoy’s tweets, terming them a “total distortion of reality”. Israel argues that the Palestinian was shot after stabbing two Israeli soldiers — however, the allegation is yet to be proven.

On Saturday, EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell condemned the shooting of the Palestinian youth and called for the incident to be investigated.

Tension has been running high across the West Bank amid repeated Israeli raids to detain “wanted Palestinians” or to demolish Palestinian homes as a collective punishment. The raids routinely spark protests in which live fire is used by Israeli security forces targeting innocent civilians, causing several fatalities and scores of serious injuries.