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Annan Urges Restraint in Mideast
U.N. Secretary-General Kofi Annan on Friday called on Palestinians and Israelis for restraint and statesmanship, following Israel's "excessive and misdirected" response to a Palestinian attack in Netanya. Both incidents resulted in deaths.
"Everyone needs to understand that there can be no military solution to this conflict," he said in a statement released in New York.
"The only way to escape from the present downward spiral lies through ending the violence and resuming negotiations aimed at a comprehensive peaceful settlement based on relevant United Nations resolutions," Annan added.
Israeli fighters launched air strikes against Palestinian targets in the West Bank city of Nablus and Ramallah Friday afternoon, killing at least six Palestinians, according to Israel Radio.
It was the first time Israel used fighter jets, instead of helicopter gunships to strike at Palestinian targets.
Earlier in the day, a Palestinian suicide bomb exploded at the entrance of a shopping mall in Israel's northern coastal city of Netanya, killing the bomber and at least six Israelis.
The conflict between the two sides has left over 500 people dead since last September. Most of them are Palestinians.
Deeply disturbed by the Israeli action, Annan said: "While I have repeatedly made clear my utter condemnation of terrorism from whatever quarter - and do so again today - I can only regard this response as excessive and misdirected. Its effect will inevitably be to increase bitterness even further on the Palestinian side."
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