Britain’s ambassador to Israel was filmed by militants from Palestinian Islamic Jihad during a secret trip he made to the Gaza border to observe Israel’s handling of Palestinian protests.
Wearing a bulletproof vest and helmet, David Quarrey travelled with a senior Israeli general to the Gaza border last week, where 48 Palestinians have been killed by Israeli troops since March.
The British diplomat’s trip was not made public but members of Islamic Jihad, a Palestinian terrorist group, posted a video of Mr Quarrey and the Israeli commander filmed from inside Gaza.
The footage did not identify Mr Quarrey and was focused on General Yoav Mordechai, the Israeli military commander for the occupied Palestinian territories.
It showed Mr Quarrey and a group of Israeli officers standing on a sand berm on the Israeli side of the fence, watching the protests unfolding inside Gaza.
الكاميرات ترصد الجنرال الإسرائيلي يؤآف مردخاي بجانب جنود الاحتلال خلال الاعتداء على مسيرة العودة الكبرى على حدود #غزة أمس pic.twitter.com/wa9iofRpkw
— النورس الإخبارية (@NawresNews) April 28, 2018
Palestinian factions sometimes film Israeli commanders to give the impression that they could be targeted by snipers. Both Mr Quarrey and Gen Mordechai left the area without incident.
The footage was published by Quds Media, a Palestinian media outlet linked to Islamic Jihad.
Israel’s military invited Mr Quarrey to make the unusual visit – British ambassadors do not often don flak jackets and head to the edge of firing zones – after he raised concerns over Israel’s use of live ammunition against Palestinian protesters.
Palestinians have been marching towards the border fence that separates Gaza from Israel every Friday since March 30 and in some cases have tried to damage the fence.
Israeli troops have killed 48 Palestinians and left another 2,600 needing hospital treatment after they were struck by live fire or injured by teargas and rubber bullets. Most of those killed have been unarmed.
“On Friday 27 April, Her Majesty’s Ambassador to Israel undertook a short visit to the Israeli side of the border between Israel and the Occupied Gaza strip, after he raised concerns regarding the use of live fire by the IDF upon Palestinians on the Gaza side of the border,” a Foreign Office spokeswoman said.
Much of his tenure in Tel Aviv has focused on the Iran deal and tensions in the Middle East, as well as the growing trade and security relationship between Britain and Israel.
This summer, he will help guide Prince William through Israel as he makes the first-ever official visit to the Jewish state by a senior royal.
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