Israeli forces injure 4 Palestinians in West Bank raid

Israeli forces raided the village of al-Tabaqa south of Hebron in the occupied West Bank late Wednesday, injuring four Palestinians.

One Palestinian was wounded by live ammunition while the others were assaulted and beaten during the incursion, local sources said, adding that Israeli troops fired live rounds and stun grenades as clashes broke out with residents.

Videos circulated by Palestinian media showed Israeli soldiers violently striking a young man and forcing him to the ground, while separate footage appeared to show several youths being detained and interrogated on the spot.

In the town of Huwara south of Nablus, Israeli forces detained a Palestinian after assaulting him, the official Palestinian news agency Wafa reported.

Troops reportedly stormed the southern part of the town, temporarily shut down the main road and searched homes while detaining several young men and children.

Separately, illegal Israeli settlers set fire to agricultural structures in the Al-Shamis area near Al-Wadi Al-Awaj northeast of occupied Jerusalem, according to the Al-Baidar Organization for the Defense of Bedouin Rights.

The rights group said the blaze caused material damage to farming facilities. It also said that armed settlers pursued a Palestinian vehicle from the nearby Al-Ma'azi community, attempting to block the road and seize the vehicle before residents intervened and forced them to withdraw.

Assaults by the Israeli army and illegal settlers have escalated in the West Bank since the Gaza war began in October 2023. More than 1,116 Palestinians have been killed, about 11,500 wounded and roughly 22,000 arrested, according to Palestinian data.

Palestinians warn that the escalation aims to pave the way for the formal Israeli annexation of the West Bank, effectively ending prospects for a Palestinian state as outlined in UN resolutions.

The international community and the UN consider the West Bank, including East Jerusalem, to be occupied Palestinian territory and regard Israeli settlements there as illegal under international law.

In a landmark opinion in July 2024, the International Court of Justice declared Israel's occupation of Palestinian territory illegal and called for the evacuation of all settlements in the West Bank and East Jerusalem.