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The Israeli army detained about 100 Palestinians in the town of Beit Ummar, north of Hebron in the southern occupied West Bank, after sealing all of the town’s entrances early Wednesday, Anadolu reports.
The operation came hours after an Israeli settler was killed and three others were wounded, one critically, in a ramming and stabbing attack at the Gush Etzion junction in the southern West Bank. The attack was carried out by two Palestinians, one of them from Beit Ummar, who were shot dead by Israeli forces.
On Tuesday, the Palestinian Health Ministry said the Palestinian Civil Affairs Authority — the official liaison with Israel — notified it that Imran al-Atrash from Hebron and Walid Mohammed Sabarneh from Beit Ummar were killed by Israeli fire near Bethlehem in the southern West Bank.
Israeli forces stormed Beit Ummar early Wednesday and raided dozens of homes, including the Sabarneh family’s house, damaging its contents, witnesses told Anadolu.
They said the army launched a broad arrest campaign in the town, detaining about 100 people.
READ: Israel plans to take 4,600 dunams in northern West Bank, citing archaeology protection
According to the witnesses, the army turned the municipal stadium into a makeshift holding and interrogation site.
Videos circulating online showed Israeli soldiers escorting bound Palestinians inside the town.
Residents said the army sealed all entrances to Beit Ummar with dirt mounds and iron gates, restricting movement in and out of the area.
The Israeli army has escalated its attacks in the West Bank since the outbreak of the Gaza war in October 2023.
More than 1,076 Palestinians have since been killed, and 10,700 others injured in attacks by the army and illegal settlers in the occupied territory. More than 20,500 people have also been arrested.
In a landmark opinion last July, 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.
READ: Israeli security warns government weakened army against settlers as West Bank tensions rise
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