West Bank Palestinians stage general strike to protest deadly Israeli strike in Gaza

By Awad Rjoob

RAMALLAH, Palestine (AA) - Palestinians staged a general strike in several cities in the occupied West Bank on Sunday in protest of a deadly Israeli strike on a "humanitarian zone" in the southern Gaza Strip.

At least 90 people were killed and nearly 300 others injured in a strike that targeted the Al-Mawasi area of Khan Younis in the southern Gaza Strip on Saturday.

The Israeli army claimed that the attack targeted Mohamed Deif, the commander of Hamas' armed wing, the Qassam Brigades, and his deputy.

According to an Anadolu reporter, shops and businesses closed in Bethlehem, Tulkarm, Jenin and Qalqilya in protest of the Israeli attack.

Tensions have been high across the occupied West Bank since Israel launched a deadly military offensive against the Gaza Strip, which has killed nearly 38,600 victims since Oct. 7.

At least 574 Palestinians, including at least 136 children, have since been killed and nearly 5,350 others injured by Israeli army fire in the occupied territory, according to the Health Ministry.

Israel stands accused of genocide at the International Court of Justice, whose latest ruling ordered Tel Aviv to immediately halt its military operation in Rafah in the southern Gaza Strip, where over a million Palestinians had sought refuge from the war before it was invaded on May 6.

* Writing by Ikram Kouachi