Military raids come as Israeli settlers are accused of storming Joseph’s Tomb in Nablus, a burial ground believed to belong to the biblical father of Jesus.
Israeli forces have detained dozens of people after storming several areas across the occupied West Bank, including the home of a Palestinian man who was shot and killed by Israeli forces in Bethlehem.
The latest raids early on Thursday come as Israeli settlers stormed Joseph’s Tomb in Nablus, a gravesite believed to be the burial place of Joseph, the father of Jesus, according to media Arabic.
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At about dawn, the Israeli army deployed several military vehicles and soldiers as they targeted the towns of Attil and Deir al-Ghusun north of Tulkarem, the Palestinian news agency Wafa reported, quoting residents from the area.
In ad-Dhahiriya village on the outskirts of Hebron on Wednesday, residents buried a Palestinian youth, who was killed the previous night in a raid by the Israeli security forces.
Israel’s military crackdown across the occupied West Bank has escalated to the highest levels in decades since October 2023, as the army and settlers have intensified their attacks on Palestinians, with Israel expanding its settlements in the territory, which are illegal under international law.
Settlers have been emboldened by the far-right government and have been rampaging across Palestinian lands with impunity, often with the military’s backing, killing and injuring civilians and destroying their property. The United Nations says attacks against Palestinians and their property in the occupied West Bank have reached unprecedented levels.
Meanwhile, some Israeli troops were deployed to Nablus to secure the Christian holy site, Joseph’s Tomb, after it was reportedly stormed by Israeli settlers.
According to media Arabic, members of the Knesset and settler leaders were among those involved in the storming of the burial ground until early on Thursday.
In recent days, Israeli settlers were also accused of arson in three villages in Masafer Yatta.
In one of the latest raids on Thursday, several young men were detained for interrogation as Israeli forces searched dozens of homes in both towns of Attil and Deir al-Ghusun, Palestinian sources told Wafa.
Among those detained in Attil was a young man who was previously injured by Israeli gunfire near the Tulkarem refugee camp last December.
The Tulkarem governorate, including the Tulkarem and Nur Shams refugee camps, has been subjected to Israeli military operations for the last 368 days, according to Wafa.
Also in Nablus, Mohammad Azem, head of Sebastia municipality, told Wafa that Israeli forces demolished a Palestinian-owned factory.
Earlier in the night, the towns of Sa’ir and ash-Shuyukh, northeast of Hebron, were also raided by Israeli forces.
In Sa’ir, the raiding forces targeted the home of Qusay Halaika, who was shot and killed by Israeli forces on Wednesday at Al-Anfaq checkpoint between Jerusalem and Bethlehem. Wafa reported that two of Halaika’s brothers were arrested during the raid.
Sources told Wafa that Halaika was left bleeding on the ground after Israeli authorities shot him multiple times.
Israeli media quoted authorities as saying that Halaika was shot after an attempted stabbing attack.
A short video clip posted on X showed Halaika apparently fending off someone and then running away before he was shot.
Meanwhile, in the Jabal Johar area of the city of Hebron, Israeli forces seized a five-storey residential building belonging to the Rajbi family, forcing residents to leave their property, according to Wafa.
Elsewhere in the occupied territory, Israeli forces withdrew on Wednesday night from the town of Hizma after a two-day siege.
According to witnesses, Israeli forces interrogated more than 100 people and detained at least 13, including a pregnant woman and her husband, before leaving.
Hizma Mayor Nawfan Salah al-Din told Wafa that the Israeli soldiers also seized at least 35 vehicles and motorcycles.
During the previous night’s Israeli raid, residents complained of cash and gold jewellery being stolen from their homes.
