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UN warns of more Gaza violence, condemns Israel's use of force

Reuters
DelhiUpdated: May 15, 2018, 05:03 PM IST
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File photo Photograph:(Reuters)

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Monday's violence on the border, which took place as the United States opened its new embassy in Jerusalem, was the bloodiest for Palestinians since the 2014 Gaza conflict

The UN human rights office condemned Monday's "appalling deadly violence" by Israeli security forces in Gaza and said it was extremely worried about what might happen later on Tuesday while calling for an independent investigation.

UN human rights spokesman Rupert Colville told a regular UN briefing in Geneva that Israel had a right to defend its borders according to international law, but lethal force must only be used a last resort and was not justified by Palestinians approaching the Gaza fence.

Monday's violence on the border, which took place as the United States opened its new embassy in Jerusalem, was the bloodiest for Palestinians since the 2014 Gaza conflict.

There were fears of further bloodshed on Tuesday as Palestinians planned a further protest to mark the "Nakba", or "Catastrophe".

That is the day Palestinians lament the creation of Israel in 1948, when hundreds of thousands of Palestinians fled or were driven from their homes in violence culminating in war between the newly created Jewish state and its Arab neighbours in 1948.