Israel soldier, two Palestinians killed in West Bank clashes

JENIN, Palestinian Territories — An Israeli soldier and two Palestinians were killed in pre-dawn clashes on Wednesday near Jenin in the occupied West Bank, an area hit by waves of recent deadly unrest.

Israeli forces said a major “was killed overnight during operational activity adjacent to the Gilboa Crossing during an exchange of fire with Palestinian terrorists”.

The Palestinian health ministry confirmed “the martyrdom of the two young men” in clashes near the checkpoint, which is known to Palestinians as Jalameh, north of the militant stronghold of Jenin.

The Palestinians killed were named as Ahmed Ayman Ibrahim Abed, 23, and Abdul Rahman Hani Subhi Abed, 22, originally from the village of Kufr Dan outside Jenin, by the official Palestinian news agency Wafa.

A Palestinian security source confirmed to AFP that Ahmed Abed was a serving intelligence officer of the Palestinian security services in the West Bank city of Qalqiliya.

The Palestinian armed groups Hamas and Islamic Jihad both lauded the Israeli soldier’s death, but neither confirmed that its fighters were involved in the gun battle.

A Hamas spokesperson praised the “heroic operation that was carried out by the resistance fighters”.

The army said the overnight clash came after it had pursued “two suspects” who were spotted “approximately 100 metres from the fence”.

“At approximately 2:15am, when the forces were just a few metres from [the suspects]... the suspects engaged fired,” said a spokesman.

The Jalameh checkpoint is a major throughfare for goods coming into the West Bank from Israel.

Security has been tightened as Israeli football club Maccabi Haifa host French giants Paris Saint-Germain in a Champions League tie later Wednesday at their base just 60 kilometres from Jenin.

Twelve other Palestinians were arrested in overnight raids across the West Bank, Wafa said.

Jenin local authorities announced a city-wide strike in response to the two deaths, which also sparked a solidarity march for their families.

Jenin has suffered frequent violence in recent months, part of a deadly flare-up that began in mid-March following deadly attacks on Israeli targets, mostly by Palestinians.

In response, Israel has launched near nightly raids on West Bank towns and cities that have killed dozens of Palestinians, including fighters.

On Sunday, a Palestinian claimed as a member by Al Aqsa Martyrs Brigade — the armed wing of president Mahmoud Abbas’ Fateh movement — died from wounds sustained during clashes with Israeli forces in Jenin camp.

Last week, army chief Kohavi said “around 1,500 wanted people were arrested and hundreds of attacks prevented” in the operations.

About 475,000 Jewish settlers currently live in the West Bank in communities considered illegal by most of the international community, alongside some 2.8 million Palestinians.