At least one dead in Israeli drone attack on house in occupied West Bank

Live Updates: Follow the latest news on Israel-Gaza

At least one Palestinian was killed and four others were wounded in an Israeli drone strike on a house in the Nour Shams camp in the occupied West Bank city of Tulkarm, Palestinian media reported on Sunday.

The Palestinian Red Crescent organization said that two people were killed in the bombing of the house, noting that its forces were unable to enter the building because of the fire caused by the bombing.

The Palestinian Health Ministry reported that four people, including two seriously injured, were admitted to Tulkarem State Hospital as a result of the bombing.

Drone strikes – and airstrikes in general – used to be rare in the occupied West Bank, but they have increased sharply since the outbreak of war between Israel and Gaza on October 7 and amid almost continuous Israeli attacks on occupied cities.

Israeli forces also arrested 20 Palestinians in raids over the weekend in Hebron, Tulkarm, Nablus, Ramallah and occupied East Jerusalem. During the raids, Israeli forces damaged Palestinian homes, severely beat prisoners and threatened their families, the report said.

Among those arrested were three teenagers aged between 15 and 16 from the town of Beit Rima in Ramallah. According to reports, there were clashes between them and Israeli forces, who stormed the town and fired live ammunition.

The latest arrests bring the total number of arrests in the occupied West Bank since October 7 to 9,450, Wafa added.

As a result of the arrests, there have been heavy clashes between the Israeli army and Hamas fighters in Shujayea in the city of Gaza since Thursday.

The weekend’s raids came days after Israel’s ultranationalist finance minister, who is also the head of a pro-settler party, said the government would encourage settlement in the West Bank as punishment for the Palestinian Authority, which governs the occupied territories after several countries recognized Palestine as a state.

Bezalel Smotrich said on Thursday he was working to revoke “various permits and benefits” for senior Palestinian officials and authorize the construction of new settlements.

The European Union condemned the minister’s announcement to legalise five outposts in the occupied Palestinian territories.

The Gulf Cooperation Council also strongly condemned and rejected the expansion of the settlements.

The settlements and outposts are communities built on land occupied by Israel since the 1967 war and are illegal under international law.

Despite his calls for punitive measures against the Palestinian Authority, Mr Smotrich on Sunday extended an exemption allowing cooperation between the Israeli banking system and Palestinian banks in the occupied West Bank.

The exemption, which was due to expire at the end of the month, allows Israeli banks to process payments and salaries in shekels. Without the extension, the Palestinian economy – which depends on this transaction process – would have suffered.

The Palestinian Authority has been suffering from a huge financial hole since Israel began withholding tax revenues collected on behalf of the Palestinian Authority following the outbreak of the Israel-Gaza war.

This crisis has decimated entire sectors in the West Bank, including the health care system. The care provided by hospitals is limited and ultimately the lives of Palestinians are also at risk.

Updated: June 30, 2024, 1:32 p.m.