Israeli airstrikes in the northern occupied West Bank killed nine Palestinian militants, including a Hamas commander
Two Israeli airstrikes in the northern West Bank killed nine Palestinian militants on Saturday, the Israeli military said, as violence resumed in the Israeli-occupied territory.
The Israeli military said its forces first struck a vehicle in a rural area northwest of the city of Tulkarem early in the morning, killing all five occupants. The IDF says they were on their way to carry out an attack.
The Palestinian Health Ministry said the men’s bodies were taken to a nearby hospital. Hamas later identified the five men as militants from the group, including a local commander.
According to an Associated Press reporter and witnesses, the explosion occurred along a road connecting the Palestinian villages of Zeita and Qaffin.
Later Saturday, the Israeli military announced that it had killed four more Palestinian militants in the Tulkarem area, shortly after they opened fire on Israeli troops operating in the area. No further information was immediately available.
According to the Palestinian Health Ministry, more than 590 Palestinians have been killed by Israeli fire in the occupied West Bank since the start of the war between Israel and Hamas in Gaza in October. Most were killed in Israeli raids and violent protests, but the dead also included bystanders and Palestinians killed in attacks by Jewish settlers.
The northern occupied West Bank has been the scene of the worst violence in the past decade. Tulkarem, with its two refugee camps, has become a major flashpoint and is regularly raided by Israeli forces. Palestinian militant groups, including Hamas and Islamic Jihad, are active in the city.
