ADDS LATEST DEATH TOLL, CHANGES HEADLINE, DECK, LEDE
By Qais Abu Samra
JENIN, Palestine (AA) – The Palestinian death toll from an ongoing Israeli military operation since Tuesday in the city of Jenin and its refugee camp in the northern occupied West Bank has risen to 11, with 25 others injured, the Palestinian Ministry of Health said late Wednesday.
The Palestine Red Crescent Society said in a statement that its crews “managed to evacuate a martyr and a person with a gunshot wound to the thigh from across the police station after the occupation forces initially prevented them from reaching the area.”
The Ministry of Health immediately announced the death of a boy in Jenin.
“The child Wasim Ahed Jaradat, 15, was martyred in Jenin, raising the number of martyrs due to the occupation's aggression on the city since Tuesday morning to 11, including four children,” it said in a statement.
The Israeli army raided the city early Tuesday, triggering clashes with Palestinians.
Tensions have been running high across the West Bank since Israel launched a deadly military offensive against the Gaza Strip, where more than 35,700 people have been killed following a cross-border attack on Israel by the Palestinian group Hamas on Oct. 7 last year.
At least 516 Palestinians have since been killed and around 5,000 others injured by Israeli army fire in the occupied territory, according to the Health Ministry.
Israel is accused of genocide at the International Court of Justice, which has ordered it to ensure that its forces do not commit acts of genocide and take measures to guarantee that humanitarian assistance is provided to civilians in Gaza.
*Writing by Mohammad Sio and Rania Abu Shamala