Six dead after Israeli raid on West Bank

An Israeli army raid on the Jenin refugee camp in the West Bank has resulted in the deaths of at least six Palestinians, aged between 22 and 49, according to the Palestinian Ministry of Health. Sixteen others have been injured. The Israeli army reports that one of the dead is a Hamas member suspected of shooting two brothers in a Jewish settlement near Huwara a week and a half ago. Four Israelis were injured in the raid.

Israeli forces surrounded a house in Jenin and killed the suspected gunman. The army claims that it also captured two of his sons in a simultaneous raid on the nearby city of Nablus. In response to the brothers’ deaths, Israeli settlers attacked Palestinians in Huwara, setting fire to buildings and cars.

A rocket was fired from the Gaza Strip towards Israel, triggering the air raid alarm, but it appears to have landed in Gaza itself. According to the AP news agency, over 60 Palestinians have been killed by the Israeli army this year, while 14 Israelis have been killed by Palestinians in the occupied West Bank and East Jerusalem. Reuters reports that 70 Palestinians and 13 Israelis have been killed this year.

Israel captured the West Bank, including East Jerusalem, in 1967 and has occupied the area ever since. In parts of the West Bank, Palestinians have a form of self-government. Around three million Palestinians live in the West Bank, alongside more than 600,000 Israeli settlers whose presence is considered illegal under international law. Although many Palestinians regard the West Bank as part of their future state, with East Jerusalem as its capital, the possibility of it becoming a reality has been diminishing, with no serious peace negotiations between Israeli and Palestinian leaders taking place for over a decade.