At least 22 Palestinians arrested in fresh Israeli raids in occupied West Bank

By Qais Abu Samra

RAMALLAH, Palestine (AA) - The Israeli army rounded up at least 22 more Palestinians in fresh military raids in the occupied West Bank, according to prisoners’ affairs groups on Thursday.

Former prisoners were among the detainees in the raids that targeted Bethlehem, Tubas, Tulkarem, and Ramallah, the Commission of Detainees’ Affairs and the Palestinian Prisoner Society said in a joint statement.

“The arrest campaigns came amid a massive aggression launched by the (Israeli) occupation against our people in retaliation that falls under the crime of collective punishment,” the statement said.

The new arrests brought the number of Palestinians detained by the Israeli army in the West Bank since October 2023 to over 14,300, including those who were released after being arrested, according to Palestinian figures.

The figure does not include those arrested from the Gaza Strip whose numbers are estimated to be in the thousands.

Over the past few years, the Israeli military has conducted regular raids in the West Bank, which have escalated with the beginning of the war on Gaza on Oct. 7, 2023. Palestinians have also been violently attacked by illegal Israeli settlers.

At least 858 Palestinians have since been killed and over 6,700 others injured by Israeli army fire in the occupied territory, according to the Health Ministry.

In July 2024, the International Court of Justice declared Israel's decades-long occupation of Palestinian land illegal and demanded the evacuation of all existing settlements in the West Bank and East Jerusalem.

*Writing by Ahmed Asmar in Ankara