Who did 'Israel' assassinate in the West Bank?
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Israeli occupation drones have led several drone attacks since October 7, targeting prominent figures in the Palestinian Resistance.
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A photo of martyr Abdullah Abu Shalal, a West Bank Resistance leader and fighter who was killed in an Israeli drone strike on January 17, 2024 (Social media)
An Israeli drone attack near the Balata refugee camp in Nablus, in the occupied West Bank, led to the martyrdom of five Palestinians, one of whom is Abdullah Abu Shalal.
Following Operation Al-Aqsa Flood, the occupation has significantly escalated its use of drone attacks, employing suicide drones and air-to-ground missiles against the residents of the West Bank in a widespread and unprecedented fashion. In the early morning hours, the men were announced dead after a drone targeted a car driving through the al-Quds Street near the camp. Reportedly, Israeli occupation forces blocked ambulances from reaching the site of the attack.
طائرة مسيرة إسرائيلية تقصف سيارة قرب مخيم بلاطة شرق نابلس بالضفة الغربية وتمنع طواقم الإسعاف من الوصول إلى السيارة المستهدفة عند مفرق شارع #القدس. #الميادين#طوفان_الأقصى pic.twitter.com/Av04sefFO6
— قناة الميادين (@AlMayadeenNews) January 17, 2024
A source familiar with Wednesday's events told Al Mayadeen that the Israeli attack killed martyr Mahmoud Abu Hamdan, martyr Mohammad al-Qatawi, and two brothers and martyrs Seif and Yazen al-Najmi. Abu Shalal is a prominent leader of the Resistance in the West Bank, according to the source.
Read more: Israeli drone strikes kill 9 Palestinians in Nablus, Tulkarm
Who is martyr Abu Shalal?
Martyr Abu Shalal was a prominent resistance commander in the Balata refugee camp and a leader in al-Aqsa Martyrs Brigades, a major Palestinian Resistance faction, that split off from Fatah.
The martyr had worked on building up resistance in the Balata refugee camp, which has become one of the main targets of the Israeli occupation, alongside the Jenin, Tulkarm, and Nur Shams camps.
Abu Shalal's actions have pushed to the top of the Israeli occupation's wanted list in the West Bank, according to our source. He had survived several previous assassination attempts. The martyr also engaged occupation forces in the West Bank on multiple occasions.
In August 2023, the occupation targeted Abu Shalal's family residence in the Balata camp, detonating it, in what has become a systematic practice, aimed at terrorizing and blackmailing the families of Resistance fighters.
Following the demolition of his home Abu Shalal appeared in a live broadcast saying, "Any honorable free person does not accept injustice and loves to live freely, so I do not accept living humiliated under any circumstances."
The Israeli occupation's Shin Bet, a special intelligence agency, said that eliminated the "head of a terror cell", which speaks to the magnitude of Abu Shalal's work. He has also been accused of carrying out numerous operations including an attack in occupied al-Quds, in which two settlers were wounded.
The martyr is said to also be responsible for a "bombing attack against IDF soldiers in October, where a soldier was wounded."
Read more: Who is Saleh al-Arouri; Hamas Resistance leader killed by 'Israel'?
