Israeli forces stormed the Jenin refugee camp on Monday to arrest two suspects.
What followed was a 20-year first: the use of helicopter gunships in the occupied West Bank, with the gunships pummeling the camp and, in addition to the deaths, injuring 91 people.
The UN’s Volker Turk made the remarks on Friday, warning that the situation was deteriorating sharply due to the use of heavy weaponry, urging Israel to stop the violence.
“This week’s violence in the occupied West Bank risks spiraling out of control, fueled by strident political rhetoric, and an escalation in the use of advanced military weaponry by Israel,” Turk said in a statement.
He added that the raid was a “major intensification of the use of weaponry more generally associated with the conduct of armed hostilities, rather than a law enforcement situation”.
He called the air strikes with helicopter gunships a “major intensification of the use of weaponry more generally associated with the conduct of armed hostilities, rather than a law enforcement situation,” Al Jazeera reported.
Turk called on Israel to abide by international law, also adding that the current situation serves “only to drive Israelis and Palestinians deeper into an abyss”.
“Israel must urgently reset its policies and actions in the West Bank in line with international human rights standards, including protecting and respecting the right to life,” Turk said.
A large-scale military incursion on the Jenin camp has happened in the past as well.
In 2002, 52 Palestinians were killed in a raid. That event became a turning point for the camp, marking it as a symbol of resistance for Palestinians.