OIC condemns Israel's ‘cold-blooded’ killing of 3 Palestinians near Nablus

By Zeynep Tufekci Gulay

ISTANBUL (AA) – The Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) on Sunday condemned the killing of three Palestinians by Israeli fire near the West Bank city of Nablus earlier this week.

Three Palestinians were killed on Thursday when Israeli forces opened fire on their vehicle in the town of Jaba in Jenin.

Eyewitnesses said Israeli forces carried out the attack after sneaking into the town in a car carrying a Palestinian plate.

In a statement, the Jeddah-based organization termed the deaths of the three Palestinians as “cold-blooded killing”.

The pan-Islamic grouping “held the Israeli occupation responsible for the continuation of its heinous crimes against the Palestinian people.”

The OIC renewed its call for the formation of an international commission of inquiry into Israeli attacks and urged the international community “to intervene urgently to stop these continuous Israeli crimes throughout the occupied Palestinian territory, including the city of Al-Quds Al-Sharif, and to provide international protection for the Palestinian people.”

Tension has escalated across the occupied West Bank in recent months with repeated Israeli attacks on Palestinian towns.

According to Palestinian figures, more than 80 Palestinians have been killed by Israeli fire since the beginning of this year. Fourteen Israelis were also killed in separate attacks during the same period.

* Ikram Imane Kouachi contributed to this report