The Global union body supports the call by UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres, backed by the EU, for an independent and transparent investigation into the violence. Thousands of Palestinians had gathered near the border to protest the continuing blockade of Gaza and the confiscation of their lands.

«This disproportionate use of lethal force, with hundreds of victims, is totally unacceptable. Israel must recognise that the only way forward is through negotiations leading to a two-state solution, instead of the perpetual use of force and economic blockade to deny the rights of the Palestinian people under international law», said ITUC General Secretary Sharan Burrow.