Israeli army detains further 55 Palestinians across West Bank

By Qais Abu Samra

RAMALLAH, Palestine (AA) – Israel arrested at least 55 Palestinians in the West Bank in the early hours of Saturday, bringing the number of Palestinian detainees to 2,040 since the recent conflict erupted last month, a local nongovernmental organization said.

"Israeli occupation forces arrested at least 55 individuals, including two women, between Friday night and Saturday morning from cities and towns in the West Bank, including East Jerusalem," the Palestinian Prisoners Society said in a statement.

It also said that 25 people were from the Al-Fawwar refugee camp in the Hebron Governorate in the southern part of the occupied West Bank.

"The number of detainees in the West Bank has now surpassed 2,040 Palestinians since Oct. 7, and these arrests were accompanied by systematic persecution of the detainees and their families," the NGO added.

Violence in West Bank has surged after Israel launched air and ground attacks on Gaza, in response to the Oct. 7 surprise offensive by the Palestinian group Hamas.​​​​​​​

Before Oct. 7, the number of Palestinians detained in Israeli jails was around 5,200, including more than 1,000 held under the notorious administrative detention policy with no charge or trial.

*Writing by Ziad Aslan in Ankara