Hundreds of Israeli soldiers raid Palestinian town in West Bank | West Bank
Hundreds of Israeli soldiers, backed by armored vehicles, raided the Palestinian town of Tubas, near Nablus, in the largest such military deployment by Israeli forces to the occupied West Bank since a ceasefire in Gaza came into force last month.
Palestinian media reported that a curfew was imposed on Tubas and some neighboring communities on Tuesday night, with roads blocked by earth barriers and families being forcibly removed from their homes to allow Israeli forces to use the buildings.
Israel’s military and internal security services said in a joint statement that they had launched a “large anti-terrorism operation” that was expected to last several days.
Israeli newspaper Haaretz reported In the brochures distributed by the Israeli army in Tubas, it was stated that the region “has become a haven for terrorism”.
“If you don’t change this, we will act like we did in Jenin and Tulkarm,” the leaflets warned, referring to two northern cities in the West Bank that were subjected to major military offensives by Israeli forces earlier this year, causing widespread damage and displacing tens of thousands of people.
There were new reports of violence in Gaza overnight, including shelling near the central town of Al Bureij. Israeli army He said he killed six Hamas militants It “most likely” emerged from a tunnel near Rafah, the city in the south of the devastated Palestinian territory.
There has been no independent statement confirming the claim, but in recent days there have been a series of clashes in the half of Gaza controlled by Israeli forces, including between militants trapped in tunnels.
Hamas on Tuesday handed over the remains of Israeli hostage Dror Or, who was killed along with his wife when attackers from the Islamist organization broke into their home during a surprise raid on Israel in October 2023 that triggered the conflict in Gaza. The remains of two hostages, one Israeli and one Thai, remained in Gaza. Israel agreed to release the bodies of 15 Palestinians in exchange for every hostage returned.
During the offensive, militants from Hamas and allied groups killed approximately 1,200 people in total and smuggled 251 into Gaza. Approximately 70,000 Palestinians were killed and 170,863 injured while securing Israel’s offensive; There have been hundreds more since the fragile ceasefire took effect last month.
The next stages of Donald Trump’s 20-point plan to end the conflict in Gaza include developing an international body to govern Gaza and oversee reconstruction under a two-year renewable mandate of the UN. An armed international stabilization force will ensure security, which is Israel’s main demand, and ensure the disarmament of Hamas. Implementation of nearly every part of the plan faces major challenges.
Violence in the West Bank, which Israel has occupied since 1967, has increased since October 2023 and continued after the ceasefire.
according to UNIsraeli soldiers or settlers have killed more than 1,000 Palestinians in the West Bank since the beginning of the war in Gaza. UN officials attributed most of these deaths to “the systematic and excessive use of lethal force by Israeli forces, which frequently included live fire, air strikes, and shoulder-launched missiles in densely populated areas, resulting in the deaths of large numbers of civilians, including children.”
At least 44 Israelis, including soldiers and civilians, have been killed in Palestinian attacks or Israeli military operations in the West Bank. According to the UN.
Earlier this week, Human Rights Watch reported that the Israeli government’s forced displacement of the population of West Bank refugee camps in January and February 2025 constituted a war crime and crimes against humanity.
32,000 people Those displaced from the camps were reportedly not allowed to return to their homes, and many of these homes were deliberately destroyed by Israeli forces, the international campaign group said.
