Israel escalates West Bank raids, detaining 15 including a child

In a series of violent raids across the occupied West Bank as a ceasefire was agreed in Lebanon, Israeli forces detained 15 Palestinians, including a child, on Tuesday night.

The Palestinian Prisoner’s Society and Ex-Detainees Affairs Commission reported that Palestinian homes were damaged during the raids, which occurred in Bethlehem, Hebron, Nablus, Qalqilya, Ramallah, and Tubas.

The raids were accompanied by assaults, threats, and other abuses against detainees and their families. 

Palestinian media shared footage showing Israeli forces storming the town of Bani Na’im in Hebron on Tuesday, where they detained a woman and a child.  

Earlier, a car ramming incident occured in Bani Na’im, which reportedly left two Israeli soldiers seriously injured. A suspect was later detained. 

On Monday, the Palestinian Authority confirmed the deaths of two Palestinians, including a teenage boy, during an Israeli raid on the West Bank village of Yabad.  

According to the official Palestinian news agency Wafa, Israeli forces entered the village on Sunday night, sparking clashes during which two Palestinians were fatally shot. 

The victims were identified by the Palestinian health ministry as 13-year-old Muhammad Rabie Hamarsheh and 20-year-old Ahmad Mahmud Zaid. 

Separately, more information emerged this week about an incident in August when Israeli soldiers and police detained a Palestinian man in the West Bank, accusing him of belonging to Hamas due to the wallpaper on his mobile phone, and beat him to death.

Israeli security officials told Ynet on Tuesday there was no evidence the man was linked to Hamas. 

As Israel’s military offensive on Gaza continues, with over 44,200 Palestinians reported killed, its attacks in the West Bank and East Jerusalem have also intensified. 

Since 7 October 2023, more than 797 Palestinians have been killed in the West Bank. 

Israeli forces have launched near-daily raids in occupied territory, detaining over 11,800 people, and holding thousands without charge, according to the Palestinian Prisoner’s Society.  

Since the beginning of the Gaza war, over 435 Palestinian women have also been detained across the West Bank, 31 of them held under administrative detention without trial.  

“Palestinian women are facing the bloodiest phase in the history of the conflict with the occupation, with the continuation of the war of genocide, in addition to facing a series of unprecedented crimes and serious violations against them, with the escalation of detentions and attacks at various levels, including sexual assaults,” the Palestinian Prisoners Society added.