By Abdul Adil
(AA, Al Jazeera, Wafa, NNA, The Muslim News)
WEST BANK
Two Palestinians were killed by Israeli occupation forces today in the Jenin refugee camp, as the Israeli military offensive in the city and camp continued for the tenth consecutive day.
This latest incident brings the total number of Palestinians killed during the ongoing military assault to 19, according to medical sources.
The Ministry of Health confirmed that the General Authority for Civil Affairs informed them that the two individuals had been shot dead by Israeli forces in the camp. Their bodies have been withheld by the occupation authorities.
Meantime, Palestinian security sources told WAFA that the two killed were identified as Yazan Hatem Al-Hassan and Amir Abu Hassan.
Israeli forces have been carrying out a large-scale military offensive in Jenin and its refugee camp, resulting in casualties, demolitions of homes and property and significant damage to infrastructure.
Late Wednesday, the Palestinian Red Crescent Society said seven Palestinians were killed and four seriously injured in Tammun, south of Tubas.
The Israeli Ynet news website quoted a military statement that confirmed the airstrike in Tammun, claiming it was against “an armed terrorist cell” as part of an ongoing military operation in the northern West Bank.
A Palestinian man was injured by Israeli forces during a military raid on the Fawwar refugee camp, south of Hebron in the occupied West Bank.
The 20-year-old suffered bullet injuries to his hand and was taken to the hospital, the Wafa news agency reported.
The Israeli army also raided the home of freed prisoner Issa al-Darabi in the nearby town of Imrish and warned against holding celebrations, the agency said. Al-Darabi was not allowed to go home but was instead deported to the Gaza Strip
A Palestinian was shot dead by Israeli army forces in the West Bank city of Nablus on Thursday, the Health Ministry said.
In a statement, the ministry said that a 42-year-old man was killed by Israeli fire in Nablus and it was notified of his death by the Civil Affairs Authority, the Palestinian Authority’s official liaison office with the Israeli authorities.
According to witnesses, an elite Israeli force using civilian vehicles raided Nablus city and shot a Palestinian, who was walking with his family in Al-Rawda neighborhood in eastern Nablus.
The official Palestinian news agency Wafa identified the victim as Qasem Aklik, and his body was seized by the Israeli army.
According to Wafa, Aklik spent 18 years in Israeli jails before he was released by Israel a few years ago.
His death came amid ongoing Israeli military operations in the cities of Jenin and Tulkarem in the northern West Bank that have killed at least 16 people and injured scores since last week.
The Israeli army on Thursday demolished another Palestinian home in the northern occupied West Bank as its incursion in Jenin entered its 10th day.
Witnesses told Anadolu that Israeli forces raided the city of Qalqilya and detonated a three-story building belonging to Jamal Abu Haniyah, who was killed by the army in August last year.
Israel has also continued its incursion in the city of Tulkarem and its two refugee camps for the last four days.
Since the start of the military operation, as many as 30 Palestinians have been killed, with 17 in Jenin, three in Tulkarem, and 10 in an Israeli airstrike on the town of Tammun.
According to the official Palestinian news agency Wafa, the Israeli army destroyed around 100 homes in Jenin and set fire to others, forcing the majority of Jenin camp residents to leave their homes and areas.
Israeli police arrested 12 Palestinians in occupied East Jerusalem for engaging in celebrations following the release of 110 Palestinian prisoners as part of the Gaza ceasefire deal.
Hamas has said the killing of its military commander, Mohammed Deif, and other leaders will only make the group stronger and has promised to continue fighting until all Israeli prisons are emptied of prisoners.
The Palestinian Ministry of Health in the occupied West Bank says two Palestinians have been killed by Israeli gunfire in the Jenin refugee camp. Israeli media reported that an Israeli officer was also killed in Jenin.
A 23-year-old Palestinian man was injured by live gunfire on Thursday evening as Israeli occupation forces stormed the town of Al-Ubeidiya, east of Bethlehem.
According to WAFA correspondent, Israeli forces raided the town while firing live ammunition, resulting in the young man being shot in the leg. He was subsequently transported to the hospital for treatment.
Two Palestinian children were injured by Israeli gunfire on Thursday evening in the town of Al-Khader, south of Bethlehem.
According to WAFA correspondent, Israeli forces opened fire on the two children near the Bakoush area, west of the town, wounding them in the foot. They were transported to Al-Yamama Hospital in the town for treatment.
In addition, Israeli forces stormed the Al-Bawaba area of Al-Khader and fired tear gas and stun grenades, causing several civilians to suffer from suffocation due to gas inhalation.
Israeli occupation forces detained five Palestinian citizens and temporarily detained three foreign activists, including former Vice President of the European Parliament, Luisa Morgantini, during a solidarity visit to Masafer Yatta, south of Hebron.
Activist Osama Makhamreh told WAFA that Israeli forces detained Palestinian activist Sami Al-Huraini and detained Morgantini along with two other foreign solidarity activists for several hours while they were visiting Khirbet al-Rakeez to support local residents facing ongoing settler and military violence.
The detained activists were taken to an interrogation center in the illegal settlement of Kiryat Arba, east of Hebron.
In addition, Israeli forces detained brothers Mohammad and Maher Abu Shaker while they were on their land in the Tha’la area. Another citizen, Mahmoud Rasmi Makhamreh, was also detained from his home in the Isfy area of Masafer Yatta.
Meanwhile, in the town of Yatta, Israeli occupation authorities detained a local Palestinian resident after summoning him for interrogation.
Masafer Yatta has been a hotspot for Israeli military and settler aggression, with frequent attempts to displace Palestinian residents from their lands.
14 Palestinians were injured by live bullets and tear gas inhalation after Israeli occupation forces attacked civilians in the town of Beitunia, west of Ramallah.
According to the Palestinian Red Crescent Society, its teams treated 14 injuries in the vicinity of Ofer military prison, which is built on the land of Beitunia.
Among the injured, three were shot with live ammunition, three were hit with rubber-coated metal bullets, and eight suffered from tear gas inhalation.
The attack took place as dozens of people gathered near the prison, awaiting the release of the third batch of Palestinian detainees from Israeli prisons as part of the Gaza ceasefire agreement.
In addition, Israeli forces stormed Shuafat camp, northeast of occupied Jerusalem, at dawn on Thursday.
Local sources said that the occupation forces stormed several neighborhoods in the camp. No detentions were reported, however.
The same sources added that the occupation forces summoned a number of families of Jerusalemite prisoners scheduled to be released today in the third batch of detainees under the ceasefire agreement.
It is scheduled to release 18 Jerusalemite detainees today, including prisoner Muhammad Faroukh, sentenced to 19 years, and prisoner Abd Duyyat, sentenced to 18 years, who will be deported.
The escalation in the West Bank comes amid a ceasefire and prisoner exchange deal in Gaza following 15 months of Israel’s bombings.
Reports say coalition partners in the Israeli government led by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu have demanded an escalation in the West Bank in return for not bringing down the government over the ceasefire deal.
At least 890 Palestinians have been killed and more than 6,700 injured by Israeli forces in the West Bank since the outbreak of the Gaza war on Oct. 7, 2023, according to the Health Ministry.
GAZA
Palestinian medics recovered the bodies of 42 people from under the rubble in Gaza, bringing the overall death toll from Israel’s indiscriminate bombings since October 2023 to 47,460, the Health Ministry said on Thursday.
A ministry statement said that nine more injured people were admitted to hospitals in the 24 hours, taking the number of the injured to 111,580 in the Israeli onslaught.
“Many victims are still trapped under the rubble and on the roads as rescuers are unable to reach them,” it added.
A ceasefire agreement took effect in Gaza on Jan. 19, halting Israel’s war on the enclave.
The Israeli onslaught has left more than 11,000 people missing, with widespread destruction and a humanitarian crisis that has claimed the lives of many elderly people and children in one of the worst global humanitarian disasters ever.
Meanwhile, US President Donald Trump’s Middle East envoy said Thursday that rebuilding the Gaza Strip could take 10 – 15 years, highlighting the vast destruction caused by Israel’s relentless bombardment over the last 15 months.
Steve Witkoff, who recently returned from a trip to the Middle East, described the devastation as overwhelming.
“There is almost nothing left of Gaza,” he told the Axios news website. “People are moving north to get back to their homes and see what happened and turn around and leave … there is no water and no electricity. It is stunning just how much damage occurred there.”
Witkoff, a real estate investor and developer, estimated that clearing the debris alone could take five years, with additional time needed to assess underground tunnels before reconstruction could begin.
“There has been this perception we can get to a solid plan for Gaza in five years. But it’s impossible. This is a 10- to 15-year rebuilding plan,” he said.
Hamas accused Israel on Thursday of systematically abusing Palestinian prisoners following the deaths of two detainees from the Gaza Strip in Israeli prisons.
“The martyrdom of prisoners Mohammed Sharif Al-Asali and Ibrahim Ashour in the occupation’s prisons once again confirms the criminal brutality of Israel in dealing with detainees and its disregard for all humanitarian values and international laws,” spokesman Abdel Latif Al-Qanou said in a statement.
He contrasted Israel’s treatment of Palestinian detainees with how Hamas handles Israeli prisoners, saying Palestinian resistance groups abide by international laws and ethical principles.
Al-Qanou urged human rights organizations to act urgently to protect Palestinian detainees from “Israel’s sadistic and racist policies.”
Three Palestinian prisoner rights organizations — the Commission of Detainees’ Affairs, the Palestinian Prisoner Society and the Addameer Association for Prisoner Care and Human Rights — confirmed Wednesday the deaths of Al-Asali, 35, and Ashour, 25.
LEBANON
The Ministry of Health in Lebanon issued a new report mapping Israeli attacks on health facilities since the beginning of the hostilities between Hezbollah and Israel on October 8, 2023.
It concluded that Israel conducted 68 attacks on 38 hospitals. As a result, eight were closed and seven remained open, but only partially operational.
A total of 16 people were killed and 74 injured in these attacks. Twenty-five vehicles were also damaged.
The Israeli army claimed Thursday to have intercepted a surveillance drone for the Hezbollah group, marking the first incident since a ceasefire agreement between Israel and Lebanon in November.
A military statement said the drone was launched from inside Lebanese territory toward Israel, without giving any further details.
No sirens were activated amid the incident, the army said.
There was no comment from Hezbollah on the Israeli claim.
According to the Israeli Channel 13, the incident was the first since a ceasefire took effect on Nov. 27, ending a period of mutual shelling between Israel and the Lebanese group Hezbollah that began on Oct. 8, 2023, and escalated into a full-scale conflict Sept. 23 last year.
Photo: Palestinian residents inspect the damage caused by the Israeli airstrike on Tammun town, Tubas, West Bank on January 30, 2025.
Photojournalist: Nedal Eshtayah/AA]
