US Secretary of State renews condemnation of Palestinian rockets

American State Department condemned Palestinians firing rockets and accused the Palestinians of “deliberately” targeting Israeli civilians.

Spokeswoman of the US Secretary of State Jen Psaki said: “We strongly condemn the continuing rocket fire into Israel and the deliberate targeting of civilians by terrorist organisations in Gaza.”

She continued: “No country can accept rocket fire aimed at civilians, and we certainly support Israel’s right to defend itself against these attacks.”

But she added that Secretary of State John Kerry has been calling on both sides to avoid ramping up tensions in the region.

“He has reiterated our concern, as our teams have on the ground to both sides, about the need to de-escalate tensions on the ground,” she said.

When pressed to answer whether either side is acting “responsibly”, as the administration wants, Psaki declined to answer. She hoped that Israel could deter future attacks, but reiterated “we prefer a truce to be reached”.

Psaki ignored that the continuous attacks of the Israeli artillery and fighter jets had resulted in the death of 81 Palestinians and lead to 540 Palestinians being wounded.