US refuses to label Israeli attacks on Palestinians ‘terror’

The State Department said Friday that recent attacks by Palestinians against Israelis are “acts of terror” but failed to apply the same standard when violence is committed against Palestinians by Israelis.

“We would consider these violent acts [by Palestinians] that we’re talking about specifically here as acts of terror,” spokesman John Kirby said in response to a question about violence in the occupied territories.

But when asked whether he also considered to be terrorist acts the stabbing of a Palestinian by a 17-year-old Israeli in the city of Dimona, Kirby brushed it aside and said he was not aware of the incident.

“I don’t have the details on that, so I’d really rather not get into this event by event,” he said.

“But we do consider these particular acts of violence that we’ve seen – the stabbings and the killings there particularly in East Jerusalem – as terror,” he said, referring to attacks by Palestinians while being careful not to label Israeli attacks as “terror”.

He added, however, that “all the violence needs to stop and calm should be restored“.

In the last seven days, several violent clashes have erupted between Palestinian youth and Israeli troops in the Israeli-occupied West Bank and East Jerusalem.

At least 1,600 Palestinians have been injured during clashes with Israelis since Oct. 3, according to the Palestinian Red Crescent.

Palestinians attend the funeral of Ahmad Salah who was shot dead by the Israeli army, in Shuafat refugee camp in Jerusalem, on October 10, 2015. Images by Anadolu agency.