Israeli army arrests 6 more Palestinians as illegal settlers storm villages in West Bank

By Awad Rajoob

RAMALLAH, Palestine (AA) - Israeli forces on Friday arrested six Palestinians during raids in several cities and villages in the occupied West Bank.

In the southern West Bank, witnesses told Anadolu that Israeli forces raided the village of Deir Sammit, west of Hebron, and arrested four residents after storming several homes.

In the northern West Bank, the Palestinian news agency Wafa reported that Israeli soldiers raided the Balata al-Balad area in eastern Nablus. They ransacked a home and arrested one Palestinian.

The Israeli army also raided the El-Ain refugee camp in western Nablus, damaging belongings in several homes without arrests, according to the agency.

In the city of Qalqilya, Israeli forces arrested another resident, searched a home, destroyed its furniture, and plundered gold jewelry, Wafa added.

Separately, illegal settlers from the southern Hebron settlement of Otniel moved westward to the Negohot settlement, passing through Palestinian villages and farmland, according to witnesses.

The settlers entered the village of Al-Alaqah, gathering around a local water well, alarming children in the area.

The group also stormed the village of Marah Al Baqqar, where they climbed the minaret of a mosque, singing and dancing.

Local residents confronted the settlers and demanded their departure, witnesses reported.

Tension has been running high across the occupied West Bank due to Israel’s deadly war on the Gaza Strip, which has killed more than 43,700 people, mostly women and children, since Oct. 7, 2023.

Over 783 Palestinians have since been killed and over 6,300 others injured by Israeli army fire in the occupied territory, according to the Health Ministry.

The escalation follows a landmark opinion in July by the International Court of Justice that 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 Mohammad Sio