Ramallah: The Israeli army killed three Palestinian men during a raid on the Balata refugee camp in the city of Nablus in the northern occupied West Bank on Monday.
The Palestinian health ministry identified the three, as 32-year-old Mohammad Abu Zaytoun, 30-year-old Fathi Abu Rizk, and 24-year-old Abdullah Abu Hamdan.
At least seven other Palestinians were injured, including four with live ammunition, and dozens of others suffered tear gas inhalation.
During a raid, more than 400 members of the Israeli forces participated.
Al-Arabiya’s camera monitored the effects of the Israeli incursion into the Balata camp.
Eyewitnesses told Anadolu Agency, “The Israeli army stormed Balata camp and besieged a number of its homes, which led to violent confrontations with dozens of citizens.”
The witnesses indicated that “an armed clash took place between gunmen and a large Israeli force that stormed Balata camp and blew up 3 Palestinian houses.”
The Palestinian Presidency strongly condemned the Israeli invasion of the Balata camp and the city of Nablus.
Nabil Abu Rudeineh, the official spokesman for the Palestinian presidency described the Israeli attack as “a real massacre and a continuation of the all-out war Israel is waging against the Palestinian people”.
The killing of the three Palestinians comes just over a week after a fragile truce agreement was signed in Gaza.
With the killing of three Palestinians in Balata camp, the number of Palestinian martyrs since the beginning of the year has risen to 159, including three from inside the Green Line, 36 from the Gaza Strip, and among the martyrs 26 children.
Israel has launched almost daily raids and killed Palestinians in the West Bank since June 2021 in an attempt to suppress the phenomenon of the growing armed resistance.
In 2022, Israeli troops killed more than 170 Palestinians in occupied East Jerusalem and the West Bank, including at least 30 children, in what was deemed the bloodiest year for Palestinians residing in those regions since 2006.
