At Least 10 Palestinians Killed in Israeli Raids Targeting Jenin, Nablus, Tubas, and Tulkarem

The Israeli military initiated a large-scale operation across four cities in the occupied West Bank on Wednesday, August 28, intensifying its ongoing campaign that has been running parallel to the conflict in Gaza for the past 10 months. In a coordinated assault during the early hours, the Israeli forces targeted Jenin, Nablus, Tubas, and Tulkarem, describing their actions as part of a “counter-terrorism operation.”

This offensive, which included airstrikes, ground troops, and the use of bulldozers, resulted in at least 10 fatalities, according to the Palestinian Red Crescent. The victims reportedly included two individuals killed in Jenin, four in an attack on a vehicle in a nearby village, and four more in a refugee camp near Tubas. An additional 15 people were injured. The Israeli military stated that they had killed nine Palestinian “terrorists” as part of the ongoing operation.

Israeli Foreign Minister Israel Katz confirmed that the military had been “operating in full force since last night,” aiming to dismantle what he described as “Iranian-Islamic terror infrastructure.” In a statement on X, Katz accused Iran of attempting to establish an “eastern front against Israel,” similar to the models it supports in Gaza and Lebanon through Hamas and Hezbollah. He emphasized the need to confront this threat with the same intensity used against Gaza’s terror networks, including temporary evacuations and other necessary measures, declaring, “This is a war, and we must win it.”

Since the October 7 attack by Hamas, over 650 Palestinians in the West Bank have been killed by Israeli forces or settlers, according to an AFP tally based on figures from the Palestinian health ministry. During the same period, at least 19 Israelis have been killed in attacks by Palestinians, according to Israeli sources.

While Israeli military operations in the West Bank have become a daily occurrence, it is uncommon for them to be conducted simultaneously in multiple cities. Recent Israeli actions have primarily focused on the northern West Bank, a region where armed resistance against Israel is particularly strong.

This latest operation follows an Israeli airstrike on the West Bank two days earlier, which the Palestinian Authority reported had killed five people. The Israeli military confirmed these deaths and stated that the strike targeted a structure used by militants to conduct attacks on Israeli soldiers.

Islamic Jihad, a Palestinian Islamist group allied with Hamas and active in the northern West Bank, condemned what it called Israel’s “open war” in a statement issued early Wednesday. The group accused Israel of trying to shift the conflict’s focus to the West Bank to annex the territory. Meanwhile, Hamas, whose influence has grown in the West Bank since the outbreak of the Gaza war, called on Palestinians to “rise up” in response to the ongoing Israeli actions. This call followed comments by Israeli National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir, who suggested he would build a synagogue at the Al-Aqsa Mosque compound in Jerusalem if given the opportunity. Ben-Gvir, a known settler, has previously advocated for the annexation of the West Bank.