Israeli drone strike in occupied West Bank kills 2 Palestinians

By Qais Abu Samra

RAMALLAH, Palestine (AA) - Two Palestinians were killed in an Israeli drone strike in the West Bank city of Tubas on Tuesday, the Health Ministry said.

Witnesses said the deaths came from a strike targeting a car near the town of Aqaba in the northern West Bank.

Another Palestinian was injured in the attack.

The Israeli army confirmed the strike, saying it had targeted what it called an “armed cell” near Aqaba.

Since the beginning of Israel’s war on Gaza on Oct. 7, 2023, years of regular Israeli military raids in the West Bank have escalated. Palestinians have also been violently attacked by illegal Israeli settlers.

At least 803 Palestinians have since been killed and over 6,450 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 declaring Israel's decades-long occupation of Palestinian land "illegal" and demanding the evacuation of all existing settlements in the West Bank and East Jerusalem.

*Writing by Ahmed Asmar in Ankara