(Adnkronos) – Italy’s foreign minister Antonio Tajani is tracking the ‘very serious’ cases of three Italian aid workers who were attacked and robbed by Israeli settlers at the house where they were staying near the occupied West Bank city of Jericho, the foreign ministry said a statement on Sunday.
“Three Italians – international volunteers – were attacked last night by Israeli settlers in the house where they were staying near Jericho, West Bank,” said the statement.
“The Italians were transferred this morning to Jericho hospital, where they were examined by doctors and assisted by Palestinian authorities, the statement continued.
“The three Italians, still in shock from the incident, have been discharged, the statement noted.
The Consulate General in Jerusalem”has been following the matter and is in constant contact with the Palestinian authorities and the Italians,” the statement continued.
Tajani is following the incident personally and is “in close contact with the Consul General,” the statement concluded.
Besides the three Italian activists, a Canadian colleague was beaten and robbed early on Sunday by masked Jewish settlers in the village of Ein al-Duyuk. The activists belong to a human rights group that sought to protect the village from settler violence, left-leaning Israeli daily Haaretz reported.
Italy “is calling on the Israeli government to stop the settlers and prevent further violence, which does not serve the realisation of the peace plan we are all working on,” Haaretz cited Tajani as saying on Sunday.
“The West Bank will not be annexed. We are completely opposed to that. The rights of the Palestinian civilian population must be respected. This is very serious,” Tajani was cited as adding.
Canada’s foreign ministry said it a statement that it “strongly condemns the violent acts committed by extremist settlers and opposes any actions or talk about annexation of the Palestinian territories,” Haaretz reported.
