Israel says it killed Islamic Jihad commander in battle at mosque, as West Bank raid enters second day
Palestinians inspect the damage after Israeli soldiers raided the Nur Shams Refugee Camp in Tulkarem
(CNN) — Israel’s military said Thursday it killed five Palestinian militants, including an Islamic Jihad commander, during an exchange of fire “within and near a mosque” in the occupied West Bank city of Tulkarem.
The firefight came after Israel on Wednesday launched one of the largest assaults on the occupied territory in years, with Foreign Minister Israel Katz calling for a Gaza-style operation in the West Bank to root out what he called “Islamic-Iranian terrorist infrastructure.”
After Israel mounted further raids early Thursday morning, the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) said among the five killed in the mosque was Muhhamad Jabber, known as Abu Shujaa, the leader of the local branch of the militant group Islamic Jihad.
Jabber had carried out numerous terror attacks, the IDF said, including a shooting attack in the West Bank city of Qalqilya in June, when an Israeli civilian was killed.
Later Thursday, the Islamic Jihad announced the “martyrdom” of Jabber, whom they said was the commander of the Tulkarem Battallion of the Al-Quds Brigades, the armed wing of the militant group.
The four others killed along with Jabber were related to his terror network and one more person has been apprehended, the IDF’s international spokesperson Lt. Col. Nadav Shoshani said in a press briefing Thursday.
The IDF said it killed 12 terrorists during the first day of its operations in Jenin and Tulkarem, both in the north of the West Bank, as well as dismantling “dozens of explosive devices” that were planted under the roads.
The raid came after Katz warned that Iran was working to establish an “eastern front” against Israel to work alongside Hamas in Gaza and Hezbollah in southern Lebanon.
“We must deal with the threat just as we deal with the terrorist infrastructure in Gaza, including the temporary evacuation of Palestinian residents and whatever steps are required,” he wrote on social media. “This is a war for all terms and purposes and we must win it.”
United Nations Secretary General Antonio Guterres said Thursday that Israel’s operation in the West Bank was “deeply concerning.”
“I strongly condemn the loss of lives, including of children, and I call for an immediate cessation of these operations,” he said.
Clashes in the West Bank have become more frequent since Israel began its war in Gaza in response to Hamas’ attack on southern Israel on October 7. Israel has occupied the West Bank since seizing territory from Jordan in 1967. Since then, it has expanded Jewish settlements in the territory, considered illegal under international law.
The Palestinian Ministry of Health reported Tuesday that 652 Palestinians, including 150 children, have been killed in the West Bank and occupied East Jerusalem since October 7, with over 5,400 others injured.
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