Palestinian authorities say seven people were killed Friday during an Israeli military operation in the area of the West Bank city of Jenin, where the Israeli military said it had been carrying out “counterterrorism activity” that included an airstrike.
Quick Read
- Israeli military conducted a counterterrorism operation in Jenin, resulting in the deaths of seven Palestinians, including four members of the Islamic Jihad militant group.
- The operation involved Israeli soldiers encircling a building with armed militants and exchanging fire, while an airstrike targeted several armed terrorists.
- The Palestinian Health Ministry confirmed the deaths but did not specify whether they resulted from the exchange of fire or the airstrike.
- The clashes in Jenin follow Israel’s announcement to build nearly 5,300 new homes in West Bank settlements, intensifying tensions in the region.
- Violence in the West Bank has escalated since the start of Israel’s war in Gaza, with over 500 Palestinians killed by Israeli fire in the West Bank since October 7.
- In Gaza, the ongoing war has resulted in over 38,000 Palestinian deaths, including many women and children, according to Gaza’s Health Ministry.
- Cease-fire talks are set to resume, with Israeli negotiators heading to Doha, Qatar, to negotiate with U.S., Egyptian, and Qatari mediators.
The Associated Press has the story:
Israel conducts military operation in W. Bank city of Jenin. 7 Palestinians killed
Newslooks- JERUSALEM (AP) —
Palestinian authorities say seven people were killed Friday during an Israeli military operation in the area of the West Bank city of Jenin, where the Israeli military said it had been carrying out “counterterrorism activity” that included an airstrike.
The military said Israeli soldiers had “encircled a building where terrorists have barricaded themselves in” and the soldiers had exchanged fire with those inside, while an airstrike had “struck several armed terrorists” in the area.
The Palestinian Health Ministry said a total of seven people had been killed, but did not specify whether they died in the exchange of fire or the airstrike. The Islamic Jihad militant group named four of the dead as its members.
The clashes in Jenin, a known militant stronghold where the army frequently operates, came a day after an Israeli anti-settlement monitoring group said the government plans to build nearly 5,300 new homes in settlements in the occupied West Bank.
The construction plans revealed by the Peace Now group are part of the hard-line government’s efforts to beef up settlements as part of a strategy of cementing Israel’s control over the West Bank to prevent a future Palestinian state. The Palestinians seek the West Bank, east Jerusalem and Gaza — areas captured by Israel in the 1967 Mideast war — for an independent state.
Violence has spiraled in the West Bank since the start of Israel’s war in Gaza, sparked by the Oct. 7 raid into southern Israel by Hamas militants who killed around 1,200 people, mostly civilians, and took more than 200 others as hostages. The Palestinian Health Ministry says over 500 Palestinians have been killed by Israeli fire in the West Bank since the start of the war. Most have been killed during Israeli raids and violent protests. The dead also include bystanders and Palestinians killed in attacks by Jewish settlers.
In Gaza, the war has so far killed more than 38,000 Palestinians, Gaza’s Health Ministry says. The ministry does not differentiate between combatants and civilians in its count, but it includes thousands of women and children.
Cease-fire talks appeared to be reviving after stalling for weeks. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office said Thursday he was sending negotiators to resume the talks, a day after Hamas handed mediators its latest response to a U.S.-backed proposal for a deal.
The revival of negotiations appeared to mark another attempt by U.S., Qatari and Egyptian mediators to overcome the gap that has repeatedly thwarted a deal over the past months. Hamas wants an agreement that ensures Israeli troops fully leave Gaza and the war ends, while Netanyahu says the war cannot end before Hamas is eliminated.
Israeli negotiators are expected to arrive in Doha, Qatar’s capital, for the talks as early as Friday, with American, Egyptian and Qatari officials present.
