The Anti-Defamation League (ADL) has expressed disappointment at a statement by UNs Secretary General Ban Ki-moon which appeared to justify the current wave of Palestinian terror as “human nature.”

In remarks he made to the UN Security Council on the situation in the Middle East, Ban Ki-moon said that while he condemns all forms of Palestinian attacks on Israeli civilians “as oppressed peoples have demonstrated throughout the ages, it is human nature to react to occupation, which often serves as a potent incubator of hate and extremism.”

He condemned Israel's "settlement enterprise" in the West Bank, calling them "provocative acts" that "rightly raise fundamental questions about Israel's commitment to a two-state solution."

ADL described the comments as “highly disturbing,” and called on the Secretary General to clarify his statement and unequivocally reject all forms of Palestinian terrorism.

‘’The Secretary General’s apparent justification of Palestinian terrorism, coming only moments after he condemned Palestinian attacks against Israelis, is a highly disturbing and incredibly short sighted statement. There is simply no justification for Palestinian or any other forms of terror. These comments will not only serve to further embolden Palestinians seeking to attack Israeli civilians, but also undermine the global struggle against terrorism by making inappropriate distinctions and rationalizations,’’ said ADL CEO Jonathan A. Greenblatt in a statement.

ADL stresses that the current wave of Palestinian violence -which has killed at least 28 Israelis- makes no distinction between ‘react[ing] to occupation’ and targeting innocent Israelis going about their daily lives.

In recent months, terror attacks have been perpetrated against Israelis walking the streets of Tel Aviv, riding the buses of Jerusalem, and driving in cars across the country. Shlomit Krigman, a 23 year-old Israeli woman, just passed away after being brutally stabbed by Palestinian terrorists while she was visiting her grandparents.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Israel’s UN ambassador slammed the UN secretary general’s comments.

"The U.N. Secretary General's remarks give a tailwind to terrorism. There is no justification for terrorism," Netanyahu said.

"The Palestinian murderers do not want to build a state. They want to destroy a state, and they say this openly. They want to murder Jews simply because they are Jews, and they say this openly. They do not murder for peace, and they do not murder for human rights," Netanyahu said in his statement following the meeting, adding that he believed the United Nations lost its neutrality "a long time ago."

"The secretary general encourages terror instead of fighting against terror," Israel’s ambassador to the UN, Danny Danon, said in a statement. "The secretary general forgot what the U.N.'s role is. Terror must not be encouraged for any reason whatsoever."

by Maureen Shamee