The fighting between the Israeli army and Hamas militants in the Gaza Strip has been going on for nearly 11 months. During this time, clashes with Iran-backed Hezbollah have also intensified in the Israel-Lebanon border region. At least 17 Palestinians were killed in the first two days of the West Bank operation.
The war between Israel and Hamas continues
The Israeli army claimed on Friday that it had killed a local commander of the Islamist movement Hamas in the city of Jenin. The army said it carried out a major operation in the occupied West Bank for the third day. Waseem Hazem was the head of Hamas in Jenin and was involved in shootings and bombings in the Palestinian territory.
According to the army, two other Hamas gunmen tried to escape in the car they were travelling in. But they were killed in the drone attack. Weapons, explosives and a large amount of cash were recovered from the car. However, there has been no comment from Hamas at the moment.
Israeli army exhumed bodies from graves
Locals said a bullet-riddled car was parked against a wall in the village of Zababdeh, outside Jenin, where the driver crashed the vehicle when pursued by Israeli special units. One of the two others who escaped from the vehicle was killed in a small drone strike outside his home that shattered windows, while another was killed a short distance away, Unnam said. Unnam said Israeli forces had removed the bodies.
Operations in the West Bank are growing rapidly
The incident came as Israeli forces continued a large-scale operation involving hundreds of soldiers and police that was launched on Wednesday morning in other volatile northwestern West Bank cities of Jenin and Tulkarm, as well as in the Jordan Valley. Israeli armed forces entered Jenin and Tulkarm with helicopters and drones on Friday, while armed bulldozers broke up roads to destroy roadside bombs planted by militant groups.
Clashes with Hezbollah also intensified
Fighting between the Israeli army and Hamas militants in the Gaza Strip continues nearly 11 months after it began. Clashes with Iran-backed Hezbollah have also intensified in the Israel-Lebanon border region. In the first two days of the West Bank operation, at least 17 Palestinians were killed, including a local commander of Iran-backed Islamic Jihad forces in Tulkarm. Since the Gaza war began after Hamas' attack on Israel last October, more than 660 Palestinian fighters and civilians (according to Palestinian figures) have been killed in the West Bank.
Britain is troubled by Israel's operation
Israel says Iran provides arms and support to terrorist groups in the West Bank, which it has occupied since the 1967 Middle East war, and the military has stepped up its campaign there as a result. The British government said on Friday it was concerned about Israel's operations in the West Bank. It said there was an urgent need to de-escalate tensions. “We understand the need to defend Israel against security threats. But we are extremely concerned by reports of civilian casualties and destruction of infrastructure,” a Foreign Office statement said.