JERUSALEM (AP) — Two Palestinians were killed and a 3rd was wounded by Israeli army fire within the occupied West Bank early Friday, Palestinian health officials said, as conflicting claims in regards to the incident emerged.
The shooting near town of Nablus, the West Bank’s second largest, was the most recent sign of escalation in recent months.
The Israeli military said troops at a military post south of Nablus opened fire after being shot at from a passing automobile. It said troops identified two suspicious vehicles and responded with live fire, reporting “hits.” The military didn’t specify whether this referred to people within the cars being killed or wounded.
An armed group, the Al Aqsa Martyrs’ Brigades, portrayed the incident as an attack and said its fighters were involved, but was short on specifics. The group is an offshoot of Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas’ Fatah party. The Palestinian prime minister, Mohammed Ishtayyeh, claimed the 2 men were killed in cold blood, but didn’t provide evidence.
The Palestinian Health Ministry identified those killed as two men from the Askar refugee camp near Nablus, ages 47 and 35. Ishtayyeh said they worked for the Civil Defense, a department within the Palestinian self-rule government that features firefighters and other emergency services staff.
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The shooting got here three days after Israeli forces raided a stronghold of a small armed group in Nablus, blowing up a bomb lab and interesting in a firefight. Five Palestinians were killed on the time, including a pacesetter of the militia, which calls itself Lions’ Den.
Ongoing Israeli arrest raids within the West Bank pose a serious challenge to Abbas’ Palestinian Authority. Abbas relies on security cooperation with Israel, particularly against his Islamic militant rivals, to stay in power. At the identical time, this cooperation is deeply unpopular amongst Palestinians who chafe against Israel’s open-ended occupation, now in its 56th yr.
Younger Palestinians are particularly disillusioned. Small bands of gunmen have formed in some areas, first within the Jenin refugee camp, a stronghold of militants, and now in Nablus. These groups challenge the Palestinian Authority and perform attacks against Israeli targets.
Greater than 125 Palestinians have been killed in Israeli-Palestinian fighting within the West Bank and east Jerusalem this yr. The fighting has surged since a series of Palestinian attacks killed 19 people in Israel within the spring. The Israeli army says many of the Palestinians killed have been militants. But stone-throwing youths protesting the incursions and others not involved in confrontations have also been killed.
Israel captured the West Bank within the 1967 Mideast war and has built greater than 130 settlements there, lots of which resemble small towns, with apartment blocks, shopping malls and industrial zones. The Palestinians want the West Bank to form the foremost a part of their future state. Most countries view the settlements as a violation of international law.
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