Israeli forces have stepped up attacks in the occupied West Bank, in which at least seven Palestinians, including two children, have been injured.
Israeli forces attacked the Qalqilya refugee camp near Nablus on Wednesday evening, shooting two Palestinians – one in the back and the other in the legs – according to the Wafa news agency.
In parallel clashes in the Askar refugee camp, Israeli fire injured five people, including two children aged 15 and 13, Wafa reported.
Separate attacks by Israeli settlers near the illegal settlement of Beit El, north of Ramallah, left a Palestinian woman injured.
The victim, identified as Tasneem Faraj, was taken to hospital after being hit on the head by stones thrown by settlers, Wafa reported.
The attacks mark the latest wave of violence in the West Bank.
In the week leading up to Monday, Israeli settlers carried out 27 attacks against Palestinians in the territory, injuring 17 people, including two children, and causing property damage, according to the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA).
On Wednesday, Israeli forces attacked the Balata refugee camp near the city of Nablus, destroying the local headquarters of the Fatah faction, Palestinian authorities said.
The day before, at least 12 Palestinians were killed in clashes with security forces carrying out raids around the northern West Bank city of Jenin.
The Israeli army also stormed the towns of Surif, northwest of Hebron, al-Khader, south of Bethlehem, and Tulkarem on Wednesday night. Clashes and arrests were reported in the village of Husan, west of Bethlehem.
In occupied East Jerusalem, Israeli soldiers stormed the Yabous Cultural Center to prevent the screening of short films about Israel’s war on Gaza.
In the town of Dura, south of Hebron, Israeli soldiers surrounded the home of Moamen Fayez al-Masalma, who was shot dead by Israeli forces in April, Wafa reported. Forcing residents to leave the building, the soldiers placed explosives on the building’s interior walls, the subsequent detonation destroying the house.
The demolition of homes of Palestinians suspected of carrying out attacks on Israelis is a long-standing practice of the military, in what human rights groups call a policy of “collective punishment” that may amount to war crimes.
Footage released by the Israeli human rights group Yesh Din shows Israeli settlers attacking a Palestinian home with stones and setting fire to a seating area.
In a second clip, cars were set on fire in a parking lot in the Palestinian village of Yatma, south of Nablus.
MK @rothmar The Israeli president told the Knesset today that “violent settlers are a modern slander.” The violent settlers themselves prove every day how wrong he is. Last night, a large group of settlers invaded the West Bank village of Yatma and set fire to a house and a parking lot: pic.twitter.com/J0xINZ59Ya
– Yesh Din English (@Yesh_Din) August 7, 2024
OCHA said the number of displaced Palestinians in the occupied West Bank, including East Jerusalem, has more than doubled since October 7, compared to the previous ten months.
Some 3,070 Palestinians have been forced from their homes due to demolitions, Israeli settler violence and land confiscations in the past 10 months, compared with 1,252 in the previous period, the UN agency said.
She added that some 181,000 people in the West Bank had been affected at least once by demolitions, destruction of roads, water and sanitation facilities and other public infrastructure since October 7, mainly during Israeli military raids in Tulkarem and Jenin.
