Kills Five Palestinians In Anti-Hamas Intelligence Operation, Israel Anticipates Rocket Attacks From The Gaza Strip

Illustration of the Israeli-Palestinian border in the West Bank. (Wikimedia Commons /Orrling)

JAKARTA - The Israeli military (IDF) is preparing for a possible barrage of rocket fire from the Gaza Strip, the deaths of at least five Palestinians in a wave of Israeli arrest operations in the West Bank.

Two IDF soldiers were injured and five Palestinians were killed in clashes in a series of anti-Hamas operations in the West Bank on Sunday.

The wave of arrests at five different locations in the West Bank targeted a Hamas cell that Israeli security forces had been tracking for several days and were planning attacks.

The raids were led by the Duvdevan counter-terrorism unit as well as the Israel Police and YAMAM Border Police and the YAMAS counter-terrorism unit and the Shin Bet security service.

IDF sources said it was possible Hamas would decide to fire rockets from the Gaza Strip in response to the operation.

"This is a Hamas cell, which we have been following for a long time with intelligence from the Shin Bet. There is always the possibility that there will be rockets, especially since this is a Hamas cell and the group is always trying to connect Gaza to the West Bank," said IDF spokesman Brigadier General Ran Kochav. , citing The Jerusalem Post September 26.

Meanwhile, yesterday's violence was the deadliest between Israel and Hamas since the 11-day Gaza war in May, threatening to escalate tensions on the two sides' borders.

Israeli Prime Minister Naftali Bennett on a flight to New York, where he will address the UN General Assembly on Monday, said the Hamas people "will carry out a terrorist attack".

"As far as we are concerned, all those killed were armed Hamas operatives, who took part in the firefight", but added he was checking the information of the relatives," an Israeli military spokesman said.

Separately, the Palestinian Health Ministry also said five Palestinians were killed, but did not specify whether they belonged to Hamas. The Palestinian Red Crescent ambulance service said four other Palestinians were injured.