9 Palestinians Died When Israeli Troops Attacked The West Bank

Israeli Military/DOK Israel Defense Forces (IDF) via Wikimedia Commons

JAKARTA - Nine Palestinians were killed when Israeli troops called Jenin and Tulkarm as well as other areas in the West Bank occupied in major operations involving helicopters and unmanned aircraft.

The attack became one of the largest in the West Bank for months.

With Israeli forces battling Hamas fighters in Gaza and facing a major increase in tensions with the Iran-backed Hezbollah movement in southern Lebanon, operations on Wednesday, August 28 emphasize various security threats Israel has fought since the start of the Gaza war last year.

Armed wings of the Hamas, Islamic Jihad and Fatah factions said in a separate statement that their gunmen detonated a bomb against Israeli military vehicles in three West Bank areas.

By noon, Jenin's city was relatively calm, but in a dense refugee camp, a city that was built tightly near major urban areas, the explosion was occasionally heard.

Not far outside the city, blood wets the soil next to a car damaged by a drone strike that the Israeli military says killed three militant fighters.

The Palestinian health ministry said troops had surrounded Jenin's main hospital, closing access with mounds - an action the military said was meant to stop fighters from seeking refuge.

A military spokesman said the operation followed a sharp increase in militant activity in recent months, with more than 150 attacks involving shootings or explosives from Tulkarm and Jenin in the past year.

He said the military considered there to be direct threats against civilians.

"The terror threat in this area is nothing new, it hasn't started yesterday and won't end tomorrow," Lieutenant Colonel Nadav Shoshani.