The Israel Defense Forces confirmed the overnight operation on X, calling it a "counter terrorism" mission in Jenin and Tulkarm.
Several hours later, the IDF said it, the Shin Bet security agency and the Air Force had attacked and killed five alleged terrorists operating in the Nur al-Shams Palestinian refugee camp, stating a compound located there was being used to manage "terrorist activity in the region."
The death toll of nine Palestinians killed and 11 wounded in the large-scale military operation was reported by state-run Palestinian WAFA news agency, citing the Palestinian Red Crescent Society.
Three Palestinians were reportedly killed when an Israeli drone targeted their vehicle, while the other four were killed in a second reported drone strike on the Al-Far'a refugee camp.
Foreign Minister Israel Katz of Israel explained on X that the operation in the refugee camps was to "thwart Islamic-Iranian terrorist infrastructure." He accused Iran of working to established a "terrorist front" in the West Bank and then called on Israel to wage war in the occupied region as it has been in Gaza.
"We must deal with the threat just as we deal with the terrorist infrastructure in Gaza, including the temporary evacuation of Palestinian residents and whatever steps are required," he said. "This is a war of everything and we must win it."
Israel has frequently conducted raids and military operations in the West Bank since its war against Hamas began with the Iran-backed militia's bloody Oct. 7 attack that killed some 1,200 Israelis.
According to the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, since the war began, Israeli forces have killed 577 Palestinians in the West Bank.
It also said that as of Sunday, 88.5% of the Gaza Strip has been placed under evacuation order.
Palestine's Ministry of Health -- which does not differentiate between Hamas fighters and civilians -- states more than 40,400 Palestinians have been killed during the war and another 93,500 have been wounded.
Israel army says killed nine in West Bank operation
Jerusalem (AFP) Aug 28, 2024 -
Israel's army said Wednesday its forces killed nine Palestinian militants during an ongoing operation in the occupied West Bank, which was launched overnight.
The Israeli forces "began a counterterrorism operation in Jenin and Tulkarem" overnight, the army said in a statement.
It specified that three "terrorists" were killed "in an aerial strike" in Jenin, two others "eliminated" in Jenin and Tulkarem and four more "eliminated" in "an aerial counterterrorism operation in the area of Faraa" in the Jordan Valley.
"At the moment, there are no injured soldiers on our side," military spokesman Nadav Shoshani told reporters.
"We have met explosives already in the first hours, and we have met real-time fire exchanged with terrorists engaging in battle."
He declined to say how long the operation would last or how many troops were involved.
It was targeting "a mixture of terror groups and terror cells", Shoshani said.
In Jenin, Israeli forces "apprehended five wanted suspects and located and confiscated weapons" including rifle parts and ammunition, he said.
"Additionally, the forces exposed and dismantled explosives that were planted under the roads in the area and were intended to be detonated in attacks against the security forces operating in the area," he said.
The Palestinian Red Crescent Society said at least 10 were killed in the operation which involved air strikes, ground forces and bulldozers.
The operation was triggered by "a significant rise in terrorist activity in the past year" emanating from the targeted areas, Shoshani said.
This included "over 150 shooting and explosive attacks... from these areas alone", he said.
Since Hamas's October 7 attack, Israeli troops or settlers have killed more than 650 Palestinians in the West Bank, according to an AFP tally based on Palestinian health ministry figures.
During the same period, at least 19 Israelis have been killed in Palestinian attacks, according to Israeli officials.
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