Clashes broke out on Saturday morning after Israeli Defense Force soldiers raided a refugee camp near the West Bank city of Jericho. shooting attack Last week at a nearby restaurant.
According to media reports, at least four Palestinians were injured, two of whom are in critical condition.
It was not clear whether they were directly involved in the violence at the Aqabat Jaber refugee camp adjacent to Jericho.
According to Hebrew-language media reports, no Israelis were injured.
At least three Palestinian suspects were arrested in the operation.
According to Palestinian media reports, Israeli troops surrounded the buildings where the suspects were holed up, and fired an anti-tank missile at the structure in an attempt to force a surrender.
IDF forces are operating in the Akbat Jaber refugee camp, near Jericho, to capture the terrorists who attacked the Almog crossroads in the Beqaa last weekend. There was an exchange of fire. Several Palestinian suspects were arrested. Current Update >>> https://t.co/q6LRjHlKDz@ItayBlumental @carmeldangor pic.twitter.com/3sUbTQdmZI
– Kann News (@kann_news) February 4, 2023
According to the Cannes Public Broadcaster, a text message was sent to the residents of the refugee camp warning them to “keep the children at home” during the operation.
“We work against terrorism in a targeted manner. Avoid unnecessary confrontation with security forces and keep your children at home. Listen to us so that we can restore peace in the camp.
According to the Haaretz daily, some mosques in the refugee camp issued calls on residents to defend the area during the military operation.
There was no official comment from the IDF.
Last Saturday evening, a Palestinian gunman opened fire at a restaurant near the Almog junction near Jericho.
Surveillance camera footage of the incident showed the gunman armed with an assault rifle and another man walking towards the restaurant. There were no casualties in the attack.
A military source said the gunman’s weapon jammed, and he only managed to fire one shot before fleeing the scene.
Security camera footage from another angle shows that the vehicle they were driving had Israeli license plates.
Attempted terrorist attack in Bekaa A terrorist who was having food in a restaurant in Almog Junction opened fire and fled, no one was injured. The terrorist was carrying a weapon and managed to fire one shot. Scans are being done to search for terrorists in the area. @ItayBlumental pic.twitter.com/bLbTEhNcoM
– Kann News (@kann_news) January 28, 2023
In recent months, Palestinian gunmen have repeatedly targeted military posts, soldiers working along the West Bank security barrier, Israeli settlements and civilians on the streets.
The restaurant shooting followed two terrorist attacks in Jerusalem within a 24-hour period, including a deadly terrorist attack in the Neve Yaakov neighborhood.
Saturday’s raid comes as tensions run high in the West Bank with an unarmed Palestinian man Shot dead after reportedly attacking Israeli soldiers near the northern West Bank city of Nablus a day earlier, the army said.
The IDF said that the soldiers first fired into the air, and when the suspect continued to refuse calls to stop, they fired directly at him, killing him. A military source said a suicide note was found on his body.
Separately on Friday, an Israeli driver came under fire near the West Bank town of Rawabi. The IDF said several bullet wounds were found on the car and shell casings were found nearby.
The incidents come as the IDF presses on with an anti-terrorist crackdown to deal with a series of attacks that killed 31 people in Israel in 2022, and killed seven more in an attack last weekend.
The IDF’s operation has made more than 2,500 arrests in almost nightly raids. It also killed 171 Palestinians in 2022, and another 36 since the beginning of the year, many of them while carrying out attacks or during clashes with security forces, although some were non-involved civilians.
