Israeli forces on Saturday imposed a lockdown on a Palestinian village in the occupied West Bank, their second day of operations there after a local resident killed two people in Israel.
“The IDF [Israeli Defense Force] is operating forcefully against terror hubs in the village of Qabatiya... accompanied by a lockdown and a complete cordon around the locality,” Israeli Minister of Defense said in a statement published by his office on Saturday.
“We will continue to pursue an uncompromising offensive policy against Palestinian terror,” he added.
Photo: Reuters
Bilal Hunaisha, a resident of Qabatiya, south of Jenin in the northern West Bank, said the town “is being subjected to collective punishment by the Israeli occupation.”
“As you can see, they blocked the way to my house and I am no longer able to move around,” he told said, pointing to a pile of rubble obstructing the road.
In the attack on Friday a 34-year-old Palestinian man killed two people in northern Israel.
The assailant, who had been working illegally in Israel, had used his employer’s vehicle to ram into a 68-year-old man and then stabbed an 18-year-old girl to death, Israeli police said.
A few hours later, the Israeli army and the Shin Bet domestic security agency began operating in Qabatiya.
They searched the perpetrator’s house and questioned suspects, the Israeli army said.
On Saturday, Israeli Chief of the General Staff Eyal Zamir ordered the reinforcement of troops deployed in the area.
“This period is characterized by lone attackers and individuals staying illegally in [Israel]. Enforcement against those who transport and employ them must be strengthened and improved,” he said. “At the same time, we must continue to enhance our capabilities to identify and thwart these attackers.”
Qabatiya resident Muhannad Zakarneh said that the Israeli army arrested him at home at 6am “for no obvious reasons” and kept him handcuffed for hours.
“When I asked what my charge was, there was no response,” he said.
The official Palestinian news agency Wafa reported that besides blocking entrances, and conducting interrogations and home searches, Israeli forces also took over a school and used it as a “detention and interrogation center.”
Since the start of the war in Gaza following Hamas’ attack on Israel in October 2023, at least 38 people, including two foreigners, have been killed inside Israel in attacks by Palestinians, according to an Agence France-Presse (AFP) tally based on official Israeli figures.
During the same period, violence has also surged in the West Bank, which Israel has occupied since 1967. Israeli troops and settlers have killed more than 1,000 Palestinians in the West Bank, including many militants as well as dozens of civilians, according to an AFP tally based on figures from the Palestinian health ministry.
According to official Israeli figures, at least 44 Israelis, soldiers and civilians, have been killed in Palestinian attacks or Israeli military operations in the same period in the West Bank.
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