RAMALLAH, April 7, 2011 (WAFA) - Minister of Foreign Affairs Riad Malki Thursday demanded Israeli Prime Minister Benyamin Netanyahu should apologize to the Palestinians for accusing them of the Itamar killings.

Israeli officials and media accused the Palestinians of the killing of a family of settlers in Itamar, south of Nablus, last month.

Malki condemned the Israeli army operations in Awarta, the closest village of Itamar which soldiers have raided several times looking for the Itamar attacker.

He described the army operations as collective punishment and a flagrant violation of  international laws and norms, particularly the Fourth Geneva Convention.

He wondered for how long will Awarta remain under the mercy of Israeli attacks under the pretext of searching for perpetrators after almost a month of the Israeli investigation.

He called on the United States and the quartet to intervene immediately to stop the continuous aggression on the Palestinians in the occupied territory, especially in Awarta.

Y.Y./M.A.