Israel's top general urges proportionate force amid attacks

JERUSALEM – Israel's top general says soldiers must use proportionate force when dealing with a wave of Palestinian attacks.

Lt. Gen. Gadi Eisenkot said Wednesday that when "there is a 13-year-old girl who is holding scissors or a knife and there is a barrier between her and the soldiers, I wouldn't want a soldier to open fire and empty a cartridge on a girl like that even if she commits a very serious act." He urged soldiers to use only "necessary force."

The remarks come amid Palestinian and international criticism that Israel is using excessive force in trying to subdue the recent violence, which has killed 27 Israelis. Some 115 Palestinians said by Israel to be attackers have been killed, many of them teenagers.

Eisenkot says soldiers can respond in life-threatening situations.