Israeli army kills five Palestinians in West Bank raid
Jerusalem, Feb 6 (EFE).- Five Palestinians have been shot and killed during a raid in the West Bank city of Jericho, the Israeli army said Monday, amid rising violence in the region.
The aim of the overnight raid in the Aqabat Jaber refugee camp was to arrest a number of militants suspected of carrying out an attempted attack on a restaurant last month, the Israeli military said.
“They were five, two of them were Hamas terrorists who tried to carry out a terrorist attack,” a security official told Efe, without revealing the whereabouts of the bodies.
An Israeli military spokesman said that several armed attackers were killed after they opened fire at soldiers operating in the area.
The Palestinian ministry of health has not given any details on the deaths, but the foreign ministry confirmed the killing of the five Palestinians and called the operation an “atrocious crime committed by the occupying forces.”
Israeli forces prevented medical teams from carrying out their work as they attacked an ambulance during the raid, according to the Palestinian Red Crescent.
On January 28, two men fled after their gun jammed before they were able to carry out an attack on a restaurant in the Vered Yeriho Israeli settlement, according to the Israeli authorities.
The armed suspects were found to be hiding in Aqabat Jaber, the military spokesman said, adding that some of the Palestinians killed in the raid were involved in the botched restaurant attack.
On Saturday, six Palestinians were injured in clashes triggered by another Israeli raid in the area.
These incidents come amid mounting violence between Israelis and Palestinians.
At least 41 Palestinians, eight of them minors, have been killed in connection with military operations, Palestinian-led attacks and clashes with Israeli troops so far this year. On the Israeli side, seven people, including a minor, have died.
On January 26, 10 Palestinians were killed in a day in the West Bank, including nine who died during a raid by Israeli forces. The next day, a Palestinian killed seven Israelis outside a synagogue in East Jerusalem.
Both are among the deadliest incidents in Israel and the West Bank in years.EFE
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