Israeli troops kill nine in West Bank raid, say Palestinian officials

Guardian:

Israeli troops kill nine in West Bank raid, say Palestinian officials


About 80 Palestinians sustained gunshot wounds in Nablus raid, according to health ministry


Israeli troops have killed nine Palestinians in a raid on the occupied West Bank city of Nablus, while about 80 more sustained gunshot wounds, the Palestinian health ministry has said.

Those killed “as a result of the occupation’s aggression on Nablus” were aged between 23 and 72, the ministry said. The wounded were taken to multiple hospitals. About 50 people were hospitalised with gunshot wounds, health officials added.


The Israeli military confirmed that its forces were operating in the northern West Bank city, but when contacted a spokesperson was unable to provide further details.


An AFP journalist said they saw Israeli forces fire teargas at Palestinians, who burned tyres and threw stones at military vehicles. Troops withdrew from the city after three hours, the journalist said.

The Palestinian Red Crescent Society said its medics had treated 45 gunshot wounds and 250 cases of teargas inhalation.

The last major Israeli raid on Nablus resulted in the deaths of five Palestinians, as troops targeted a local militant group, the Lions’ Den. In a message posted on Telegram on Wednesday, the group said its fighters were involved in a “battle of honour” against Israeli forces.

The latest deadly Israeli incursion follows an appeal by the UN Middle East peace envoy, Tor Wennesland, for the violence to be halted as an “urgent priority”. “We have seen ominous signs of what awaits if we fail to address the current instability,” he told the UN security council on Monday.



Since the start of this year, the Israeli-Palestinian conflict has claimed the lives of 55 Palestinian adults and children, including militants and civilians. Nine Israeli civilians, including three children, one Ukrainian civilian and a police officer have been killed over the same period, according to an AFP tally based on official sources from both sides.

The US secretary of state, Antony Blinken, spoke on Saturday with the Israeli prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, and separately with the Palestinian president, Mahmoud Abbas, calling on the two leaders to “restore calm”.

Last month’s visit to Israel and Palestine by Washington’s top envoy has been followed by further rifts between officials, as well as violence.

Blinken’s phone calls followed a decision by Israel’s new hard-right government to give retroactive permission to multiple settlement outposts in the West Bank – a move that drew nearly unanimous criticism among major powers. Netanyahu took office in December and handed key West Bank powers to extreme-right ministers.

Israel has occupied Palestine since the six-day war of 1967. Last year was the deadliest year in the territory since the UN started tracking casualties in 2005.