A 15-year-old Palestinian child was killed by invading Israeli forces in the northern West Bank refugee camp of Jenin on Monday, the Palestinian Ministry of Health said in a statement.
The killing of the child raises the number of Palestinians killed so far in the current Israeli raid of Jenin to four.
Names of the Victims
The Ministry released the names of the Palestinians killed. They are:
- Ahmed Yousef Saqr, 15 years old
- Qais Majdi Adel Jabareen, 21 years old
- Khaled Azzam Asasa, 21 years old.
- Qassam Faisal Abu Sariya, 29 years old.
Palestinian medical sources also updated the number of Palestinian wounded to 45, a few of whom are in critical condition.
Israeli Escalation
The latest violence followed a large Israeli raid on Jenin, which began in the early morning hours on Monday.
What the Israelis didn’t anticipate is a Palestinian ambush that damaged military vehicles and wounded, according to the latest count, seven Israeli occupation soldiers.
For its part, the Palestinian Resistance said in a statement that the number is higher, claiming that Israel is hiding its casualties for political reasons.
A Child Killed, A Journalist Wounded: Ongoing Israeli Attack on Jenin Kills Four, Wounds Scores#Israel #jenin #PalestineResists pic.twitter.com/5gezqL16Gt
— The Palestine Chronicle (@PalestineChron) June 19, 2023
Bombardment
Meanwhile, Israeli media and Palestinian eyewitnesses reported that Israeli fighter jets bombed targets in the Occupied West Bank for the first time since the Second Intifada 20 years ago.
At least one Israeli military Apache helicopter is also reported to have bombed targets in the Jabriyat neighborhood of Jenin camp.
The Israeli army said that the aim of the military operation in Jenin was to arrest wanted Palestinians, a reference to Palestinian fighters who carry out resistance operations against the Israeli military or armed settlers.
Additionally, the official Israeli Broadcasting Corporation reported that Israeli soldiers were ‘lightly and moderately wounded’ when an armored vehicle carrying them was detonated during the withdrawal from a position in Jenin.
The Jenin Brigade of the Al-Quds Brigades, the armed wing of Islamic Jihad, said its members clashed with Israeli special forces discovered in the Jabriyat area of the Jenin refugee camp. It stated that it had detonated high-explosive devices for the first time.
Israeli occupation forces shoot a Palestinian journalist covering the Israeli military aggression on #Jenin pic.twitter.com/QF2q4W5MXh
— The Palestine Chronicle (@PalestineChron) June 19, 2023
Red Crescent Statement
On the other hand, the Palestinian Red Crescent said that the Israeli occupation forces are obstructing the arrival of ambulances to rescue the injured in Jenin, noting that an Israeli military vehicle deliberately rammed a Palestinian ambulance to prevent its arrival to rescue the injured.
Attack on Journalists
Israeli occupation forces targeted Palestinian journalists while covering the ongoing Israeli aggression on the city of Jenin and its camp on Monday.
Local journalist Hafiz Abu Sabra told WAFA that Israeli forces directly opened gunfire at his vehicle while he was covering the assault near the entrance of the camp, causing damage.
The soldiers also opened fire on Hazem Nasser, a photojournalist atal-Ghad TV channel.
READ: Israeli Occupation Forces Target Palestinian Journalists Covering Military Raid in Jenin (VIDEO)
Arrests
All of this came hours after the Israeli occupation forces arrested 5 Palestinians during a campaign of military raids that included several areas in the West Bank.
The occupation army said in a statement that its forces arrested three citizens from the town of Husan in the Bethlehem district, and arrested a citizen from the town of Huwwara, south of Nablus, in addition to a boy from the town of Araba, south of Jenin.
Source: The Palestine Chronicle. 20 June 2023