UNITED NATIONS, December 29. /TASS/. Israel began force operations in the West Bank long before the October 7 Hamas attack and regardless of any terrorist threats, Russia’s Permanent Representative to the United Nations Vasily Nebenzya said.

"In the context of the violence in the West Bank, we would like to specially stress that Israel’s numerous force operations in this part of the occupied Palestinian territories began long before the October 7 terrorist attack, which, I would like to stress once again, we categorically condemn, and without any links to the terrorist treat the Israelis are using as a guise for the mop-up of Gaza, which is unprecedented in terms of the number of victims and the scale of damage," he said at a UN Security Council meeting on the situation in the Middle East.

He recalled that the death toll from combat operations in the Gaza Strip has exceeded 21,000, with 144 UN employees being among them. "Apart from that, as many as 311 medical personnel and 103 journalists have been killed in Israeli attacks," Nebenzya noted.

"Israel continues seizing properties of Palestinians and demolishing their houses amid these developments. West Jerusalem continues its illegal policy of expanding the Israeli settlement activity," the Russian diplomat stressed.