spot_img
29 C
Philippines
Thursday, March 28, 2024

Air strikes, rocket fire in deadly raid on West Bank

- Advertisement -

GAZA CITY—The Israeli army and Palestinian militants traded air strikes and rocket fire in and around Gaza Thursday, a day after the deadliest Israeli raid in the occupied West Bank in nearly 20 years.

Eleven Palestinians, including a 16-year-old, were killed and more than 80 wounded by gunfire on Wednesday when Israeli troops raided the flashpoint West Bank city of Nablus, drawing international appeals for calm.

Top Palestinian official Hussein Al Sheikh described the raid as a “massacre” and called for “international protection for our people”.

ROCKET TRAILS. Trails of smoke are seen as rockets are fired from Gaza towards Israel during the sunrise, in Gaza City on February 23. AFP

Before dawn on Thursday, Palestinian militants hit back firing six rockets from Gaza into Israel.

The Israeli army said it managed to intercept five of them, while the sixth struck an uninhabited area.

- Advertisement -

Palestinian militant group Islamic Jihad claimed responsibility for the rockets after it called on “resistance forces” to respond to the “major crime” in Nablus.

Two hours later, the Israeli military carried out air strikes on multiple targets in Gaza, sending plumes of black smoke into the sky.

The missiles targeted “a weapons factory” and a “military camp”, both run by Gaza’s Islamist rulers Hamas, the army said in a statement.

United Nations chief Antonio Guterres appealed for calm, warning that tensions in the West Bank had reached their most dangerous level in years.

“Our immediate priority must be to prevent further escalation, reduce tensions and restore calm,” the UN chief said.

“The situation in the occupied Palestinian territory is at its most combustible in years,” he added, pointing to “sky high” tensions and the stalled peace process.

The Israeli army said Wednesday’s raid had targeted a “hideout apartment” used by suspected militants accused of shootings in the West Bank. It said one of the wanted suspects was “neutralized”, along with two others at the property who had opened fire on troops.

The suspects and Israeli forces “exchanged fire… there were also rockets that were fired on the house” by the army, spokesman Richard Hecht told journalists.

- Advertisement -

LATEST NEWS

Popular Articles