IOF launch large-scale raids, arrests, demolitions across West Bank
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Israeli forces carry out mass raids in the West Bank, arrest lawmakers and ex-prisoners, and demolish homes in Beit Lahm and the Jordan Valley.
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Palestinians check the rubble of a house after it was demolished by the Israeli army in the West Bank village of Beit Sira, near Ramallah, Tuesday, Aug. 19, 2025 (AP)
Israeli occupation forces carried out a large-scale raid and arrest campaign on Thursday across several Palestinian governorates, targeting members of the Palestinian Legislative Council, liberated prisoners, and young men. The raids were accompanied by physical assaults, home demolitions, and widespread vandalism.
In Tubas governorate, occupation forces stormed al-Far’a refugee camp south of the city, conducting extensive house-to-house searches. Soldiers vandalized homes and assaulted residents, leaving one young man injured after being beaten.
In Salfit, occupation forces arrested legislator Nasser Abdel Jawad and his son, Mohammed, following a raid on their home in the town of Deir Ballut.
In Tulkarm, troops stormed the towns of Kafr al-Labad and Deir al-Ghusoun, detaining former prisoner Bakr Khurayoush, recently released in the latest prisoner exchange, alongside four other young men.
According to Palestine Today, confrontations erupted in Beit Furik, east of Nablus, as youths resisted incursions. Additional raids targeted the towns of Qaryut, Aqraba, and Beita, where occupation soldiers attempted to take down a Palestinian flag raised on a pole in Aqraba.
In Ramallah and al-Bireh governorates, six Palestinians were arrested, including Hamza Ahmad al-Matri and Mujahid Ramadan al-Toukhi from al-Am’ari refugee camp, as well as Haitham Saeed Ibrahim, Haitham Karajeh, Ahmad Mustafa Hajir, and Mustafa Hajir from Deir Ibzi’ village west of Ramallah.
Occupation demolishes homes, agricultural structures
Simultaneously, Israeli forces demolished a 40-square-meter agricultural structure in al-Khass village east of Beit Lahm, despite the owner receiving only a short notice prior to the demolition. The move is part of a broader policy to restrict Palestinian farmers and allow expansion on their lands.
In nearby al-Rashaydeh village, occupation bulldozers demolished a residential room belonging to Ali Mohammed Rashaydeh. The community frequently faces demolitions, displacement orders, and repeated assaults from Israeli forces.
Meanwhile, in the northern Jordan Valley, occupation forces stormed the Ain al-Hilweh community and carried out new demolitions targeting residential and agricultural facilities. Residents reported house raids, assaults on families, and harassment of shepherds and their livestock as part of a systematic campaign to uproot Palestinian communities from the area.
Smotrich approves settlement plans to 'bury the Palestinian state'
"Israel's" Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich has approved the advancement of the E1 settlement plan, a long-stalled construction project that would effectively sever east occupied al-Quds from the rest of the occupied West Bank.
"The plan will bury the idea of a Palestinian state," Smotrich stated, describing it as the "final nail in the coffin" for Palestinian statehood.
According to Smotrich, the plans have been advanced with complete coordination with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and "our friends in the United States."
"The US administration completely supports our steps in the West Bank," he said.
The plan reportedly includes the construction of 3,401 housing units in Ma'aleh Adumim, an illegal settlement located in the occupied West Bank. Additionally, the area, known as E1, is considered strategically vital by both Israeli authorities and Palestinians.
"From the Palestinian perspective and that of the international community, this is a critical area. Without it, the establishment of a Palestinian state with East al-Quds as its capital is simply impossible," Smotrich said.
Read more: Netanyahu from West Bank: ‘We thwarted Palestinian statehood’
