Israel hits West Bank with drone strikes and raids

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Israeli forces carried out several raids and drone strikes in the occupied West Bank overnight on Saturday and into Sunday morning.

Many Palestinians were injured but the exact number was still being assessed, according to the Palestinian Wafa news agency.

At least 16 people were arrested in the West Bank, mainly from the Nur Shams refugee camp, reported Wafa.

The arrests included relatives of Mohammad Hussein Masalma, 22, who on Saturday was shot dead in his car at the entrance to the Al Fawwar refugee camp, south of Hebron.

Israel also carried out a drone attack in Tulkarm's Nur Shams refugee camps. There are reports of injuries, Wafa said. Israeli forces were also accused of vandalising homes.

East of Qalqilya, Israeli forces raided the town of Kafr Qaddoum, where they arrested the father of a wanted man in an apparent bid to pressure the wanted man into handing himself over, Wafa reported. Gunfire was also heard in Azzoun, near Qalqilya, where no arrests were made, Wafa said.

In Askar camp, near the city of Nablus, three were injured by bullets fired by Israeli forces who had stormed the area and placed snipers on rooftops.

On Saturday, Israeli forces shot dead Mr Masalma in the occupied West Bank on Saturday, the Palestinian Health Ministry said. The Israeli military said soldiers “neutralised” the driver after he rammed a car into a military post near Fawwar refugee camp, south of Hebron.

Israel said it has arrested about 2,550 people in the occupied West Bank since the outbreak of the Gaza war on October 7, but the UN said the figure was much higher, reporting the detention of around 4,785 Palestinians.

The period has also seen a rise in settler violence against Palestinians in the occupied West Bank.

On Thursday, the UAE called for an urgent meeting of the UN Security Council to discuss the deteriorating situation in the West Bank.