Israeli forces escalated their assault on the occupied West Bank city of Tulkarm as Palestinians celebrated Eid al-Fitr.
The Israeli assault has been ongoing for over two months, with airstrikes, sieges and arrests targeting major refugee camps.
On Sunday, the first day of Eid al-Fitr in the occupied Palestinian territories, Israeli forces carried out raids and arrested Palestinians amid the celebrations.
The Tulkarm Media Committee said Israeli forces bolstered their presence over the holiday, setting up checkpoints that have restricted Palestinians’ movements.
“At dawn, the occupation forces stormed the Aktaba suburb, east of Tulkarm, and arrested Abdullah Alaria, a former prisoner, and the young man Muhammad Samih Abu Harb, after raiding and searching their homes,” the committee was quoted by The New Arab’s Arabic-language sister site as saying.
It added that five young men were arrested at a temporary checkpoint set up in the Dhnaba suburb, and of them at dawn after severe beatings.
The committee said the Nour Shams refugee camp saw Israeli forces burn homes in the Manshiyya neighbourhood, causing plumes of smoke to rise from the buildings in the besieged camp.
Bulldozers were also deployed to destroy buildings while families were expelled from their homes.
In the Tulkarm camp, Israeli forces continued to displace residents, with many neighbourhoods now empty.
Soldiers also harassed children playing in the streets during the Eid holiday, chasing them and confiscating plastic toys.
Israel’s assault on Tulkarm has killed at least 13 civilians, including a child and two women – one of whom was eight months pregnant.
More than 4,000 families have been forced to flee the Tulkarm and Nour Shams refugee camps, along with dozens of families from the city’s northern neighbourhoods.
