Israel faced growing scrutiny today over its assault on Palestinians in the West Bank after the UN Middle East envoy said the Jewish state had been "morally repugnant."
Mr Terje Roed-Larsen, UN Special Co-ordinator for the occupied Palestinian territories, denounced Israel for blocking aid to the wounded at a Palestinian refugee camp in one of the fiercest battles of its military campaign, now easing slightly after three weeks.
Mr Roed-Larsen said: "It is totally unacceptable and horrific beyond belief."
At the same time UN Secretary-General Mr Kofi Annan told the Security Council today a large armed international force in Palestinian areas was in the best interest of Israel, which has long opposed the idea.
In remarks to a closed session of the UN Security Council, Mr Annan also called on Israel to end a curfew and allow humanitarian workers full access to the devastated Jenin refugee camp, describing the situation there as horrific.
Mr Annan said it was time for the international community to pursue such an option in a pro-active way, rather than waiting for the parties to arrive at this conclusion on their own.
It could only succeed, however, if Israelis saw it as a part of a process leading to long-term security and if Palestinians saw it as part of a process leading to the end of the occupation and the withdrawal of Israeli settlements.
However this eveing an Israeli spokesman rejected Mr Annan's call for an armed multinational force in the Palestinian territories, saying such a force was inappropriate and would be in danger from Palestinian extremists.
This comes a day after US Secretary of State Mr Colin Powell wrapped up a would-be peace mission that failed to hammer out a truce between Israel and the Palestinians.
The Palestinians claim about 500 people were massacred in Jenin, many of them women and children, and that some were executed after surrendering.
But Israeli foreign ministry spokesman Mr Gideon Meir said: "The international community and the press believe these lies and don't ask for proof from the Palestinians. Where is the proof? There was devastation but there was no massacre".
Israel said the camp housed Palestinian militants and closed off all access after invading on April 3rd as part of what it calls a campaign to wipe out the "infrastructure of terrorism." It refused to allow aid groups or media access except in small groups accompanied by the army.
"It is totally unacceptable that the government of Israel for 11 days did not allow search and rescue teams to come. This is morally repugnant," said Mr Roed-Larsen.
"The stench of death is horrible," he said. "We have expert people here who have been in war zones and earthquakes and they say they have never seen anything like it".
The US group Human Rights Watch has claimed Israeli soldiers have used Palestinians as human shields, forcing them to open suspicious packages, orchestrate raids on houses, and inform on their neighbours. The charges were denied.
Israel pledged today to withdraw from most West Bank cities by the end of the week but said it would continue to besiege Mr Yasser Arafat's compound and Bethlehem's Nativity church.
A US official said Mr Powell could return to the Middle East in two or three weeks, depending on progress made on the ground by US Assistant Secretary of State for Near East Affairs Mr William Burns, who stayed behind to meet Israeli and Palestinian officials.
US special Middle East envoy Mr Anthony Zinni is also expected to return shortly, and CIA chief Mr George Tenet may travel to the region soon.
Meanwhile four Israeli helicopters opened fire today over the West Bank village of Beit Hassan, east of Nablus, after the army imposed a curfew there, a journalist in the neighbouring village said.
The helicopters appeared to have opened fire on an abandoned house in an orchard in Beit Hassan, a village in an area of Palestinian administrative but Israeli security control 10 kilometres (six miles) east of Nablus.
Israel public radio, quoting Palestinian sources, said a wanted Palestinian suspect had been hiding out in the building.
Israel has been scouring the West Bank for suspected militants since March 29th, as part of a controversial offensive called Operation Defensive Wall.
AFP