World, Europe

Gaza killings: Belgium summons Israeli ambassador

Israeli Ambassador in Brussels Simona Frankel had labeled martyred Palestinians as ‘terrorists’

15.05.2018 - Update : 15.05.2018
Gaza killings: Belgium summons Israeli ambassador

By Serife Cetin

BRUSSELS

Belgian Foreign Minister Didier Reynders on Tuesday summoned Israeli Ambassador in Brussels Simona Frankel over her comments on the killing of peaceful protesters in Gaza, according to local media.

Belgium’s official news agency Belga reported that Frankel was called to the Foreign Ministry over her remarks in which she labeled martyred Palestinians as “terrorists”.

“We can hear a lot of things, but it has a limit,” Reynders said in a statement.

Prime Minister Charles Michel had also reacted against the ambassador’s remark saying: “I am saddened by the death of every human being, even the death of 55 ‘terrorists’ who lost their lives at the [Gaza] border.”

At least 61 Palestinian demonstrators were martyred and thousands more injured by Israeli forces.

Thousands of Palestinians have gathered on Gaza Strip’s eastern border since Monday morning to take part in protests aimed to commemorate the Nakba anniversary and protest relocating of the U.S. Embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem.

Since the border rallies began on March 30, more than 100 Palestinian demonstrators have been martyred by cross-border Israeli gunfire, according to the Palestinian Health Ministry.

The rallies are to culminate on Tuesday, the 70th anniversary of Israel's establishment -- an event Palestinians refer to as the "Nakba" or "the Catastrophe".

Last week, the Israeli government said the ongoing border protests constituted a “state of war” in which international humanitarian law did not apply.

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