Undercover Border Police shoot 6 attackers in Jenin gun battle overnight

Undercover and regular Border Police forces clashed with Palestinian gunmen in the West Bank during a heavy exchange of fire early Monday morning, hitting several of the attackers, Israel Police said in a statement.

Police said members of its paramilitary unit “neutralized a number of terrorists” who had opened fire at the force during an arrest operation in the city of Jenin. The attackers also hurled explosive devices at the Border Police units.

At least six gunmen were hit, according to the statement, which did not give an assessment of their injuries. An M-16 rifle was recovered from one of the gunmen involved in the clash.

There were no injuries to Israeli forces, police said.

The firefight erupted when Israeli forces carried out a predawn joint operation with the IDF to arrest five terror suspects in Jenin. The Palestinians were wanted for questioning by the Shin Bet security service.

Having arrested the suspects, Israeli forces were withdrawing when they came under “massive fire” from Palestinian gunmen who also hurled explosives at the forces.

“Forces responded with fire at several of the gunmen who were identified as being armed and firing, and also at gunmen who threw or were holding explosive devices,” the statement said.

Gunfire was also directed at armored vehicles used by the Israeli forces and one was so badly damaged that it became unusable. Other forces were able to extract the vehicle while under fire, police said.

The statement did not provide any further details about the arrest operation, the nature of the activities and what the suspects were wanted for.