At least three dead in drone strike on Jenin refugee camp as dozens of Israeli tanks entered town.
A number of hospitals were surrounded and at least three people killed when Israeli forces launched a major raid on Jenin in the occupied West Bank.
The attacks, launched overnight and lasting until Friday, also left at least 14 others injured, according to Palestinian sources. The raid ended after several hours.
A drone strike on the Jenin refugee camp killed at least three people, the Palestinian ambulance service said, but the Israeli military said five people were killed. Airstrikes have become more regular in the West Bank as the war in Gaza rages.
Emergency services were prevented by Israeli forces from reaching the injured, potentially putting lives at risk, the official Palestinian news agency Wafa reported.
On Thursday, around 10:30 p.m., the Israeli army pushed at least 80 military vehicles into the city of Jenin, looting Palestinian homes and arresting several people. Violent clashes were reported.
“Dozens of armored vehicles arrived, along with bulldozers, damaging cars and damaging roads,” Tel Aviv Tribune’s Sara Khairat reported from occupied East Jerusalem. The raid lasted approximately eight hours.
At least four hospitals were surrounded by Israeli soldiers, including Ibn Sina Hospital.
“Israeli forces arrived at Ibn Sina hospital, one of the largest in the occupied West Bank. They arrived in a raid during which they asked medical staff to raise their hands and evacuate the hospital,” Khairat said.
A number of hospital doctors refused to comply and evacuate; two paramedics were arrested, she added.
“It is important to note that this happened in the Jenin refugee camp, where clashes have been intense almost daily… But the nature of this particular raid is truly incredible. It’s not just about a hospital, but also about how Israeli forces arrive,” Khairat continued.
The Israeli army said it exchanged fire with Palestinian fighters, who then used ambulances to flee to Ibn Sina hospital “in order to hide there.” A Palestinian fighter was arrested at the entrance to the medical center, the army said.
Tensions have been high in the West Bank since Israel launched its war against Hamas on October 7, which has killed at least 11,500 people in the Gaza Strip.
Israeli forces arrested 47 Palestinians in the West Bank overnight, the Commission for Prisoners and Ex-Detainees Affairs announced Friday. Twenty-six of the arrests took place in Nelin, west of Ramallah.
At a checkpoint north of Hebron, there was a shootout between Palestinian fighters and Israeli troops on Friday, in which two Palestinians were killed, said Tel Aviv Tribune’s Zein Basravi, reporting from Ramallah.
On Thursday, three Palestinians were shot dead by Israeli soldiers after opening fire at another checkpoint in the West Bank. An Israeli soldier was killed in the attack, according to Israeli officials.
Basravi said such attacks using small arms and explosives have increased in recent weeks amid growing anger over civilian deaths in Gaza and the occupation of the West Bank.
“As Israel continues to increase pressure and pressure on Palestinian communities, people are starting to react,” he said.
Since October 7, 203 Palestinians have been killed in Israeli raids in the West Bank.