Tulkarm: Israeli forces conducted an overnight raid in a village near Tulkarm in the occupied West Bank, resulting in the deaths of five Palestinians, as reported by the official Palestinian news agency Wafa, citing Palestinian security sources.
Reports from security sources and a Reuters correspondent on-site indicated that Israeli forces removed some of the bodies following the raid in Deir al-Ghusun village. The Israeli military stated that it was engaged in “counterterrorism activities in the area”.
Saturday’s operation near Tulkarm, a contentious city, marked the latest in a series of escalating clashes between Israeli forces and Palestinians in the occupied West Bank. Tensions have been mounting for over two years, intensifying since the Hamas-led attack on Israel last October.
According to records from the Palestinian Health Ministry, at least 460 Palestinians have been killed by Israeli forces or Jewish settlers in the West Bank or East Jerusalem since October 7. While most were armed combatants, casualties also include stone-throwing youths and uninvolved civilians.
The Palestinian aspiration for an independent state encompasses the West Bank and Gaza, territories seized by Israel in the 1967 Middle East war, with East Jerusalem as its capital.
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Efforts backed by the United States to negotiate an agreement between Israel and the Palestinians have stalled for the past decade. However, the conflict in Gaza has renewed pressure for a revival of initiatives aimed at achieving a two-state solution.
Health officials in the Hamas-ruled Gaza Strip report that over 34,000 Palestinians have been killed in Israel’s seven-month assault. The conflict erupted when Hamas militants attacked Israel on October 7, resulting in 1,200 fatalities and the abduction of 252 individuals, 133 of whom are believed to be still held captive in Gaza, according to Israeli accounts.
