Middle East Conflict
Two Palestinian gunmen killed in Nablus raid
A Molotov cocktail thrown by a Palestinian protester explodes on an Israeli armored vehicle in Nablus. photo
© Majdi Mohammed/AP/dpa
The operation is part of an offensive by Israel in the West Bank that has already claimed many lives. The military kills two Palestinians reportedly belonging to the Al-Aqsa Brigades.
During an Israeli military operation in the city Two armed Palestinians have been killed in Nablus in the occupied West Bank. They were shot dead by Israeli soldiers during a raid, according to the Palestinian Ministry of Health in Ramallah.
According to the Israeli military, both men were suspected of shooting at a police car near an Israeli settlement a few days ago. When they tried to arrest, there was an exchange of gunfire, it said.
According to Palestinian reports, the dead were members of the al-Aqsa Brigades, the military wing of Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas’ Fatah movement.
Like the Palestinian city of Jenin, Nablus is considered a stronghold of militant Palestinians. Both cities are in the northern West Bank. Israel’s army has been carrying out increased raids there since a series of attacks.
Israel’s army in Jenin only ended its largest military operation there in two decades on Wednesday. After air raids, around a thousand soldiers moved into the city on Monday night to smash “terrorist infrastructure” there. They exchanged violent gunfire with armed residents. Twelve Palestinians and one Israeli soldier were killed.
A total of 155 Palestinians have already died this year in Israeli military operations, confrontations or as a result of their own attacks. The majority are armed fighters, but civilians are also among those killed in military operations. During the same period, 23 Israelis, one Ukrainian and one Italian were killed in attacks.
Israel had conquered the West Bank and East Jerusalem during the 1967 Six Day War. The Palestinians are demanding the territories for their own state.