ERBIL, Kurdistan Region of Iraq – Iraq on Thursday joined several other countries in condemning Israeli troops that opened fire in the direction of a delegation of international diplomats in the Jenin Camp in the West Bank.

Israel on Wednesday opened fire in the general direction of a delegation of diplomats from over 20 countries, who were invited by the Palestinian Authority (PA) to see firsthand the state of the war-torn camp as a result of Israeli military operations. The diplomats dispersed, however, when the Israeli army fired “warning shots” in their general direction, arguing that they had strayed from the approved route.

The move sparked international outcry, with several countries asking for an investigation to be launched regarding the incident. Iraq joined multiple countries on Thursday in condemning the incident, with the foreign ministry expressing its “condemnation, in the strongest terms, of the attack carried out by the Zionist entity's [Israeli] forces against an international diplomatic delegation comprising 25 ambassadors and consuls.”

“Targeting diplomatic representatives is a flagrant violation of international law and diplomatic norms, reflects a clear disregard for the safety of international missions, and is a breach of the sanctity of diplomatic work,” the ministry added.

The incident caused an outcry of condemnations from numerous countries, while many summoned heads of Israeli diplomatic missions in their countries to provide a clarification as to the reasoning behind the action.

The Israeli army said in a statement after the shots that “the delegation deviated from the approved route and entered an area where they were not authorized to be," prompting soldiers on duty in the area to fire “warning shots,” adding that no casualties were reported and the Israeli army “regrets the inconvenience.”

Italy, Spain, France, Ireland, Egypt, Portugal, and Canada, among other nations, have either summoned Israeli diplomats serving in their country or condemned the action, with some demanding an investigation into the matter.

Israel has begun targeting the Gaza Strip and the West Bank with renewed intensity after a short-lived ceasefire broke down earlier in March, with a death toll that rises by the tens if not the hundreds on a daily basis.