Israel arrests 60 more Palestinians in West Bank raids

By Qais Abu Samra

RAMALLAH, Palestine (AA) - Israeli forces rounded up 60 Palestinians in military raids in the occupied West Bank on Monday, according to prisoners’ affairs groups.

A joint statement by the Commission of Detainees Affairs and the Palestinian Prisoner Society said most of the arrests took place in Hebron and Bethlehem in the southern West Bank.

“The arrests were marked by abuse, brutal beatings, threats against detainees and their families, along with acts of sabotage and destruction in the homes of citizens,” the statement said.

Tensions have been running high across the West Bank amid an Israeli military offensive on the Gaza Strip following a cross-border attack by Hamas on Oct. 7.

The Israeli army has since detained more than 3,540 Palestinians in the West Bank, according to Palestinian figures.

Before the outbreak of the Gaza conflict, the number of Palestinian detainees in Israeli jails was estimated at around 5,200, including more than 1,000 held under Israel's notorious administrative detention policy without charge or trial.

*Writing by Mohammad Sio in Ankara