Israel has launched a large military operation in the occupied West Bank city of Jenin that the Palestinian Health Ministry said had killed at least six people and injured 35.
Israel announced a “significant and broad military operation” against Palestinian militants in the city. Jenin has seen repeated Israeli incursions and gun battles with militants in recent years, even before Hamas’s October 7 2023 attack ignited the war in Gaza.
The latest operation came just days into a fragile ceasefire with Hamas in Gaza that is supposed to last for six weeks and see 33 militant-held hostages released in return for hundreds of Palestinians imprisoned by Israel. Three hostages and 90 prisoners were released on Sunday, when it took effect.
Israel captured the West Bank, Gaza and east Jerusalem in 1967. The Palestinians seek an independent state encompassing all three territories.
The ceasefire does not apply to the West Bank, which has seen a surge of violence since the start of the war. Israeli troops have carried out almost daily raids that often prompt gun battles.
There has also been a rise in attacks on Palestinians by Jewish extremists – including a rampage in two Palestinian villages overnight on Monday – as well as Palestinian attacks on Israelis.
Hamas condemned the Israeli operation in Jenin, calling on Palestinians in the occupied West Bank to step up their own attacks.
The smaller and more radical Islamic Jihad militant group also condemned the operation, saying it reflected Israel’s “failure to achieve its goals in Gaza”. It said it was also a “desperate attempt” by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to save his governing coalition.
Mr Netanyahu has faced criticism from his far-right allies over the ceasefire, which required Israeli troops to pull back from populated areas in Gaza and envisions the release of hundreds of Palestinian prisoners, including militants convicted of involvement in deadly attacks on Israelis.
The ceasefire has already seen Hamas return to the streets, showing that it remains in firm control of the territory despite 15 months of war that killed tens of thousands of Palestinians and caused widespread devastation.
One of his erstwhile partners, Itamar Ben-Gvir, quit the government the day the ceasefire went into effect, weakening the coalition but still leaving Mr Netanyahu with a parliamentary majority. Another, far-right leader, finance minister Bezalel Smotrich, has threatened to resign if Israel does not resume the war after the first phase of the ceasefire ends in six weeks.
The war began when Hamas-led militants stormed into southern Israel from Gaza, killing some 1,200 people, mostly civilians, and abducting another 250. More than 90 captives are still being held in Gaza, around a third of whom are believed to be dead.
Israel’s military campaign has killed more than 47,000 Palestinians in Gaza, according to local health authorities, who say women and children make up more than half of the deaths but do not say how many of the dead were fighters.
Sourse: breakingnews.ie
