In daytime raid, IDF clashes with Palestinian gunmen near Jenin refugee camp

Israeli troops clashed with Palestinian gunmen by the Jenin refugee camp in the northern West Bank on Tuesday morning, in an unusual morning raid in the volatile area.

Palestinian media reports said that Israeli troops were raiding the refugee camp itself. The Israeli army said soldiers were operating in Wadi Burqin, close to the refugee camp entrance.

Gunshots could be heard in footage from the area. According to local media, Israeli soldiers surrounded the home of a wanted Palestinian in order to arrest him.

The Palestinian, identified as Mohammad al-Tubasi, refused to turn himself in. Troops fired anti-tank shells at his home, part of a military tactic known as a “pressure cooker.” In photos circulated on social media, al-Tubasi can be seen wearing the uniform of the Palestinian Authority’s Preventative Security corps.

The military said troops detained a suspect involved in terror activities, without elaborating on his identity, adding that two M16 rifles and a military vest were seized at his home.

Three Palestinians were wounded during the gun battle, according to the Palestinian Authority Health Ministry. One was hit by live fire in the knee, while another sustained shrapnel wounds to the upper body. Health officials said a third sustained “bruises” but did not elaborate.

#صورة

مصادر محلية لنيو برس: جيش الاحتلال أعتقل عنصر الأمن الفلسطيني محمد الطوباسي أثناء اقتحامه لحي الهدف بجنين. pic.twitter.com/fHMX3hzmFd

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— Newpress | نيو برس (@NewpressPs) May 24, 2022

The IDF said troops returned fire toward armed Palestinians and that “hits were identified.” No Israeli soldiers were hurt in the operation.

Two M16 rifles and a militrary vest seized at the home of a wanted Palestinian near Jenin in the West Bank, May 24, 2022. (Israel Defense Forces)

Israeli security forces have stepped up their operations in the West Bank following a deadly wave of terror attacks inside Israel that have left 19 people dead since March 22. The raids have concentrated on the increasingly unstable Jenin area, from where several of the attackers hailed.

At least 30 Palestinians were killed over the same period, according to the Palestinian Authority Health Ministry. Some were shot by Israeli soldiers while committing terror attacks, while others were engaged in violent gunfights with soldiers, and still others — such as Al Jazeera journalist Shireen Abu Akleh — were civilians.

Abu Akleh was killed amid clashes between Israeli troops and Palestinian gunmen in Jenin. The Israel Defense Forces says it has not yet been able to determine who fired the fatal shot.

The Israeli military announced on Tuesday morning five additional terror suspects had been detained across the West Bank. At least two possessed illegal weaponry, an army spokesperson said.

مصادر صحفية: احتجاز جنود الاحتلال لشاب أثناء اقتحامهم حي الهدف بمحيط مخيم جنين، ومحاصرتهم لمنزل عائلة الطوباسي pic.twitter.com/7avhSd3V9I

— Newpress | نيو برس (@NewpressPs) May 24, 2022

Israeli troops engaged in a gunfight with Palestinians in the Jenin area during a similar raid on Friday. The Israel Defense Forces said in a later statement that Israeli troops opened fire in response to violence during operations in nearby Kafr Dan. A teenage Palestinian gunman identified as 17-year-old Amjad al-Fayyed was killed and another was critically wounded during the firefight, according to the Palestinian Authority Health Ministry.

Photos circulated on social media appeared to show the teen wearing clothing associated with the Palestinian Islamic Jihad and Hamas terror groups, as well as the military wing of Fatah.

Earlier this month, Noam Raz, a veteran officer of the elite Yamam counterterrorism unit, was killed when he was hit by gunfire during an Israeli arrest operation near Jenin.