UNITED NATIONS, April 22 (UPI) -- U.N. Secretary-General Kofi Annan voiced alarm Thursday at the deadly consequences of a two-day Israeli incursion into the northern Gaza Strip.
More than two dozen children were injured Thursday in clashes between demonstrators and Israeli troops in Gaza, medical sources said. A Health Ministry official said among the wounded was a 7-year-old girl suffering serious injuries in the stomach.
In a statement issued by his spokesman, Fred Eckhard, Annan said Palestinians killed in the last two days included five children under the age of 15
Annan said he was aware that the incursion followed rocket and mortar fire against Israeli targets.
"However, the secretary-general urges Israel to respect its obligations under international law as an occupying power regarding the use of disproportionate force in civilian areas," said the brief statement read aloud by Eckhard to reporters.
