Palestinians strike in occupied West Bank against Israeli killings in Gaza | News from the occupied West Bank

Following the Israeli attack on a security zone in which at least 90 people were killed, Palestinians are calling for a general strike in solidarity with the people of the Gaza Strip.

Palestinians in the occupied West Bank are holding a general strike in protest against Israel’s war on Gaza and condemning Saturday’s attack on the designated al-Mawasi security zone that killed at least 90 people and injured about 300 others.

Most cities in the West Bank joined the general strike on Sunday against the Israeli air strike on the refugee camp west of Khan Younis. Palestinians also protested against the devastating war in the cities of Jenin, Hebron and Tubas on Saturday evening.

Videos were shared on local Palestinian social media accounts on Sunday morning showing shops being closed in Jenin, the Dheisheh refugee camp in Bethlehem and Tulkarem in response to calls for a strike.

#Sayings | This is a very popular game that is very popular in the US and UK. pic.twitter.com/lOp3VgaPxw

— PalinfoAr (@PalinfoAr) July 14, 2024

Translation: A strike in the city of Jenin to denounce the occupation massacres in Khan Younis and the Shati camp.

Al Jazeera’s Nour Odeh, reporting from Ramallah, said Palestinians felt this was “the bare minimum” they could do “to express their solidarity and feel like they are standing by their fellow Palestinians in Gaza, who feel helpless,” while confronting Israeli attacks on several towns in the occupied West Bank since October 7.

“The reality of the occupation and relentless war in Gaza, as well as the raids, house demolitions and land expropriations here in the West Bank, complete this expression of solidarity,” Odeh said, adding that the attacks were unlikely to have any impact beyond the emotional response.

Anger over “fragmented politics”

Palestinians are not only expressing anger over the war in Gaza, but also frustration over the country’s fragmented politics, Odeh says.

“In Ramallah, for example, the Palestinian factions could not agree to join the general strike, while in other cities the same factions agreed on this bare minimum.”

The Gaza Strip’s Health Ministry reported on Sunday that at least 38,584 Palestinians had been killed and 88,881 injured in Israel’s war against the enclave.

Meanwhile, violence against Palestinians in the West Bank, which had been escalating since before the start of Israel’s war on Gaza in October, has increased dramatically in recent months. An increase in Israeli military attacks on Palestinian groups, the expansion of settlements and violent attacks by Jewish settlers on Palestinian villages have provoked responses from Palestinian armed groups in the occupied territories.

The Palestinian Prisoners’ Society reported on Sunday that Israeli soldiers arrested 30 Palestinians across the occupied West Bank in the past two days. Israel has arrested nearly 10,000 Palestinians in almost daily raids in the occupied West Bank.