US State Department spokesman Richard Boucher yesterday expressed \"deep concern\" over Israel’s strikes against targets in heavily populated PLO controlled sections of Gaza. Israel’s military activity came in response to the PLO’s Kassam-2 rockets attacks. Boucher said that while the US understands Israel’s self-defense needs, the State Department remains alarmed over the “escalation in violence” in the region.
UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan sharply criticized Israel’s aerial strike that resulted in the wounding of UN personnel and damage to a UN building. UN Mideast envoy Terje Larsen said that the UN had filed formal complaints with the appropriate diplomatic channels. Damage to the UN facility was light and Israel was quick to issue an apology, adding that UN facilities and personnel were not targeted and the damage incurred was not intentional. Larsen called Israel’s apology and explanation “utterly unacceptable.\"
UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan sharply criticized Israel’s aerial strike that resulted in the wounding of UN personnel and damage to a UN building. UN Mideast envoy Terje Larsen said that the UN had filed formal complaints with the appropriate diplomatic channels. Damage to the UN facility was light and Israel was quick to issue an apology, adding that UN facilities and personnel were not targeted and the damage incurred was not intentional. Larsen called Israel’s apology and explanation “utterly unacceptable.\"