Israeli drone strikes kill 9 Palestinians in Nablus, Tulkarm
8 Min Read
Israeli occupation forces simultaneously carry out a large-scale arrest campaign amid fierce confrontations.
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An Israeli bulldozer approaches a vehicle that was hit by a drone strike in Nablus, the occupied West Bank, January 17, 2024 (Social media)
Israeli occupation forces (IOF) carried out Wednesday a drone strike on a vehicle in Nablus, the occupied West Bank, killing at least three Palestinians, sources told Al Mayadeen.
The drone strike was carried out at the junction of al-Quds Street near the Balata camp east of Nablus, with the Palestinian Red Crescent being prohibited by the IOF from reaching the scene to tend to any possible survivors, as the crime scene was cordoned off.
After they were allowed to reach the site, the Palestinian Red Crescent reported that its crews managed to recover the remains of a Palestinian martyr who was taken to the Rafidia Surgical Hospital, while Israeli occupation forces seized the body of another.
Nablus issued the obituaries of the martyrs identified as Seif and Yazan al-Najmi, as well as Mohammad al-Qattawi.
Footage of an Israeli drone targeting a Palestinian car in #Nablus, West Bank.
— Al Mayadeen English (@MayadeenEnglish) January 17, 2024
The Palestinian Red Crescent reports that occupation forces are preventing ambulance crews from reaching the targeted car. pic.twitter.com/TFMwleIrAa
Another drone strike was launched on a vehicle in Tulkarm, martyring at least four Palestinians, the Palestinian Red Crescent said.
Subsequent reports said the Israeli drone strike on a vehicle near the Balata refugee camp in Nablus martyred five individuals.
The Israeli occupation's usage of drone warfare in the occupied West Bank has seen an uptick in recent months, namely in the wake of Operation Al-Aqsa Flood, with the targets being Palestinians it suspects of being involved in the plight of Resistance as it seeks to nip in the bud any West Bank bid in solidarity with the people and Resistance of Gaza in light of aggression they are facing.
The latest drone strike, which took place earlier in the month, killed six Palestinians at al-Shouhada roundabout south of Jenin. The six martyrs included four brothers: Hazaa Naji Hassan Darwish (27 years old), Rami (22 years old), Ahmed (24 years old), and Alaa (29 years old), as well as Razkallah Nabil Suleiman (18 years old) and Mohammed Yasser Musa Asa'as. One Palestinian youth from a village south of Jenin was also critically injured and later succumbed to his wounds, raising the number of martyrs to seven.
According to reports, the siblings were on their way to work when the Israeli drone attack struck and killed them.
It is worth noting that at least 327 Palestinians have been killed at the hands of Israeli occupation forces and settlers in the occupied West Bank since October 7, according to a count by the Palestinian Ministry of Health.
Nablus
Sources told Al Mayadeen and Palestinian media reported that the IOF conducted incursions into various areas in cities and refugee camps across the occupied West Bank in the early hours of Tuesday morning. These sources said the local fighters confronted the invading Israeli forces.
Sources told Al Mayadeen that Israeli occupation forces, supported by bulldozers, invaded the city of Nablus in the northern and central West Bank. Resistance fighters confronted them by opening fire during the invasion from the east of the city and the direction of the Balata refugee camp.
Palestinian sources mentioned that the Israeli forces "withdrew from the vicinity of the Balata camp after confiscating the targeted vehicle and detaining those inside it, without determining the nature of their condition, whether they were martyrs or wounded."
In a brief statement, the Palestinian Red Crescent noted that Israeli occupation forces prevented its emergency personnel from reaching the site of the targeted vehicle. Local Palestinian media added that an Israeli military bulldozer placed sand around the vehicle that was targeted near the camp.
Resistance fighters confronted the occupation's vehicles at the southern entrance of the Balata camp, and the occupation forces responded by sending additional military reinforcements from the Awarta checkpoint south of Nablus and Beit Furik east of the city.
Refugee camps confrontations
Field sources reported that confrontations erupted between Resistance fighters and the IOF in the vicinity of the Balata camp in Nablus. The occupation's bulldozers cleared some roads inside the camp as reinforcements made their way to the site to aid the IOF.
It was explained that the invading forces were targeted with locally made improvised explosive devices (IEDs). Israeli reconnaissance aircraft were circling over the Balata camp for hours, while extremely violent confrontations broke out with the IOF.
After two hours of the invasion of the Balata camp, during which eight houses of Resistance fighters were raided, the occupation forces withdrew to nearby checkpoints. Israeli forces then returned and invaded the camp and the eastern area of Nablus shortly afterward with intel provided by reconnaissance UAVs flying overhead.
The Israeli forces also invaded the village of Burin, south of the city of Nablus, according to local Palestinian media.
Tulkarm
In the northern West Bank, Israeli forces invaded the city of Tulkarm from multiple axes. Fierce confrontations broke out between Resistance fighters and the invading forces in the Tulkarm refugee camp.
The IOF besieged the refugee camp, invaded the vicinity of Thabet Thabet Governmental Hospital, and carried out several arrests.
Resistance fighters targeted an Israeli military bulldozer with a powerful explosive device in the Tulkarm refugee camp during the invasion as the confrontations were taking place.
Qalqilya
In Qalqilya, west-central West Bank, with Israeli reconnaissance UAVs flying at low altitudes, Israeli occupation forces invaded several neighborhoods in the city.
Reports said the Israeli occupation forces called for military reinforcements from a military checkpoint south of the city of Qalqilya. They invaded the neighborhoods of Kafr Saba and al-Qar'an, arresting a large number of Gaza workers from inside a residential building in the city.
They also invaded the town of Azzun east of Qalqilya, where Resistance fighters resisted the invading forces using locally made explosive devices. Confrontations erupted between the resistance fighters and the occupation forces that invaded the town of Kafr Laqif east of Qalqilya.
Areeha
In the east-central West Bank, the Palestinian Red Crescent announced that occupation forces prevented first responders from providing care to a wounded individual inside the Ain Sultan camp in Areeha. Local media reported that the occupation forces arrested Shams Abu Hussein, who was shot, and Kareem al-Gharam during the invasion of the Ain Sultan refugee camp.
Ramallah and al-Bireh
In Ramallah and al-Bireh, Israeli occupation forces raided several homes during the invasion of the Jalazone refugee camp, north of Ramallah, before they sabotaged the homes of the afflicted people. They also invaded the town of Atara north of Ramallah and the towns of Beitillu and Deir Ammar, west of the city.
Israeli forces also invaded the Balou neighborhood in the city of al-Bireh, arresting Palestinian teacher Badria Hamdan after raiding her home in the neighborhood.
Al-Khalil
In the southern West Bank, the occupation forces invaded the town of Bani Na'im east of al-Khalil, assaulting a young man after raiding a house during a large-scale invasion of the town. Calls were made through mosque loudspeakers to confront the Israeli invasion.
Beit Lahm
In Beit Lahm in the southern West Bank, Israeli forces invaded the town of Taqqu' southeast of the city, arresting youths Imad and Iyas Shahin, Khaled al-Saifi, and Abdullah Muzahar after raiding their homes in the city's Dheisheh refugee camp.
Al-Quds
In the occupied city of al-Quds and its towns, Israeli occupation forces carried out several invasions and raids, invading the town of Silwan and raiding one of its homes. They also invaded the town of al-Eizariya, arresting elderly woman Um Samer Tabanja after raiding her home in the town of Qatanna, northwest of the occupied al-Quds.
Escalations in West Bank
The Israeli occupation is not letting off at all in the West Bank, and while it is commonplace for it to kill and kidnap Palestinians, its level of violence and criminality has been on an uptick since the start of Operation Al-Aqsa Flood.
A total of 5,835 Palestinians have been detained since the launch of Operation Al-Aqsa Flood on October 7, the latest tally shows.
In the West Bank and occupied al-Quds, detained Palestinians include those who are taken from homes and military checkpoints, those who surrender under pressure, and those used by the occupation as human shields before they get dragged to detention centers.
It should be noted that this is the total number of detained Palestinians, including the few that were later released at various times.
On Monday, for example, Israeli incursions into the West Bank extended to the Ein al-Sultan camp in Areeha and the historic campus of Al-Najah National University in Nablus.
