two killed in Israeli operations

Tel Aviv (dpa) — Two Palestinians were killed during Israeli army operations in the northern West Bank, the Israeli military said on Saturday.

In the Qabatiya area, a man threw a stone at soldiers, who then “responded with fire and eliminated the terrorist,” according to the military. The Palestinian Ministry of Health in Ramallah said the deceased was a 16-year-old.

In a separate operation in the Silat al-Harithiya area, a Palestinian threw an explosive device at Israeli soldiers, the military said. The soldiers opened fire and again “eliminated the terrorist.” The Palestinian Health Ministry said the 22-year-old was killed by shots to the chest.
Violence in the West Bank has surged since the start of the Gaza war in October 2023. The Israeli military has repeatedly carried out large-scale operations in the territory against suspected Palestinian militants.

According to the Palestinian Ministry of Health, 1,030 Palestinians have been killed in the West Bank in the past two years, including 235 this year alone.

Israel captured the West Bank in the 1967 Six-Day War and has occupied it since. The Palestinians claim the territory, as well as the Gaza Strip, for their own state with East Jerusalem as its capital.