By Emily Rose
JERUSALEM (Reuters) – One Palestinian was shot dead early morning on Thursday during overnight raids in Qalandia refugee camp in the occupied West Bank, Palestinian officials said.
The West Bank, among areas where Palestinians seek a state, has seen a surge of violence since Israel stepped up the operations in response to a series of street attacks in its cities last year.
While the Israeli military did not confirm the death, it said it had been operating in a number of locations in the West Bank, conducting arrests and confiscating weapons. While in Qalandia, the military said, it came under attack by locals and responded with dispersal methods and live fire.
“During the activity suspects hurled rocks and blocks from the rooftops aiming at soldiers operating beneath, risking their lives,” said a military statement. “The soldiers responded with riot dispersal means and live ammunition.”
In the first two weeks of 2023, six Palestinians have been killed in the raids, including three teenagers, according to Palestinian officials. No Israeli soldiers have been killed in the operations.
Separately, on Wednesday, in the southern West Bank, a Palestinian stabbed a Jewish settler at a farm and was shot, Yochai Damri, the head of local settlements, told Israel’s Army Radio. It was not clear whether the wounded settler or someone else fired the shots, he said.
Israel says the raids are a security measure targeting suspected militants. Palestinians consider the raids a form of collective punishment and say they are fighting against decades of Israeli occupation.
(Reporting by Emily Rose, Ali Sawafta; Editing by Frank Jack Daniel)
