Israeli security forces raided the flashpoint West Bank district of Jenin on Saturday, killing one person and injuring 12 people, after vowing that there would “not be limits” to curb surging violence.
The operation, which lasted several hours, came after a gunman from Jenin went on a shooting rampage in a popular Tel Aviv nightlife area on Thursday evening, killing three Israelis and injuring more than a dozen people.
Following the attack, Israeli Prime Minister Naftali Bennett gave security agencies “full freedom” to end deadly violence that has surged since March 22 “in order to defeat terror.”
Photo: EPA-EFE
“There are not and will not be limits for this war,” Bennett said.
On Saturday, the army said security forces had launched the operation in the city of Jenin, in the north of the West Bank, its adjacent refugee camp and nearby villages.
The Palestinian Ministry of Health said that at least one Palestinian was killed by Israeli gunfire, while the Red Crescent said that 12 were injured.
The Islamic Jihad group said that one of its fighters, whom it identified as 23-year-old Ahmed al-Saadi, died during clashes in the camp.
A crowd of mourners marched through the streets carrying al-Saadi’s body on a stretcher covered with the group’s flag.
Palestinian security sources said part of Saturday’s operation was to identify the home of the Tel Aviv assailant ahead of demolishing it.
Human rights advocates have repeatedly denounced Israel’s policy of demolishing the homes of Palestinian attackers, saying that those affected are often relatives or neighbors unconnected to the crime, while Israel says it acts as a deterrent.
The Israeli army said troops and border police were “conducting counterterrorism activity” in the Jenin area, when gunmen opened fire “endangering their lives.”
In response, troops opened fire “towars the armed assailants,” the army said, adding that there were no casualties in Israeli ranks.
“An M16 assault rifle used by an assailant to attack the troops was confiscated,” it said.
The Jenin refugee camp is a stronghold of armed factions, where three other Palestinians linked to an attack on Israel were killed by the army last week.
Saturday’s raid comes a day after Israel said it had killed Raad Hazem, 28, the alleged Tel Aviv attacker.
In addition to giving security forces free rein to curb a surge in violence, Bennett on Friday ordered the closure of the Jalameh checkpoint between Jenin and Israel.
On Saturday evening, the Israeli Ministry of Defense department responsible for civil affairs in the Palestinian territories announced the closure of a second checkpoint in the area and an “intensification” of checks.
“We will do whatever it takes, whatever is necessary, for however long and wherever needed, until both safety and the sense of security are restored,” army chief Lieutenant General Aviv Kochavi told soldiers in the West Bank.
On Friday, the father of the alleged Tel Aviv attacker, Fathi Hazem — a retired Palestinian security forces officer according to Palestinian sources — struck a defiant tone.
Speaking to hundreds at the family home in Jenin, he said that Palestinians were looking for “freedom and independence.”
Fourteen people have been killed in attacks in Israel since March 22, including some carried out by assailants linked to or inspired by the Islamic State group.
Over the same period, at least 10 Palestinians have been killed, including assailants.
Hamas praised the Tel Aviv attack — drawing criticism from the UN — but did not claim responsibility.
Palestinian President Mahmud Abbas denounced the Tel Aviv attack, while the US stressed its support of key ally Israel.
The Tel Aviv attack killed three Israeli men: childhood friends Tomer Morad and Eytam Magini, as well as Barak Lufan, a father of three.
It came amid heightened tensions during Ramadan, after violence flared during the Muslim holy month last year leading to 11 days of devastating conflict between Israel and Palestinian militants in the Hamas-ruled Gaza Strip.
Earlier this month, Israeli security forces killed three alleged Islamic Jihad members when they came under fire during an operation to arrest them in Jenin.
The raid, in which four Israeli soldiers were injured, followed another deadly attack on March 29 in Bnei Brak, a largely ultra-Orthodox Jewish city near Tel Aviv.
The alleged assailant, a Palestinian from Jenin, shot dead two Israeli civilians, two Ukrainians and an Arab-Israeli police officer.
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