West Bank raids: Israeli forces detain Palestinians, demolish properties including petrol station

Israel’s frequent violence in the West Bank intensified throughout Sunday to Monday, as the army detained over a dozen Palestinians amid a series of raids of towns in the occupied territory.

The detention of 15 Palestinians took place across the towns of Hebron, Nablus, Ramallah, Jenin, and Tulkarm, the Palestinian Prisoner's Society and the Detainees' and Ex-Detainees' Affairs Commission said in a statement on Monday, as cited by the Palestinian news agency Wafa.

Among those arrested was a woman, as well as former prisoners, the statement added.

Thousands of Palestinians have detained in the West Bank, including children, over the months as Israel wages its deadly military onslaught in the Gaza Strip.

Since the start of Israel’s war on October 7, at least 9,670 Palestinians have been subject to detention in the West Bank, amid a stepped-up crackdown in the territory, which had already intensified following Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's return to power in 2022.

At least 553 Palestinians, including 131 children, have been killed by the Israeli military since the start of the military onslaught over nine months ago, in one of the deadliest periods in the West Bank in decades.

Additionally, several attacks by both the army and illegal settlers have been reported over the weekend, and on Monday.

Israeli settlers reportedly set fire to large swathes of Palestinian territory in Wadi Yasuf, north of the Al-Laban Al-Sharqiya village, south of Nablus.

The Israeli extremists, from the settlement of Rahalim, also attacked homes belonging to Palestinian Bedouins and attempted to steel livestock, eyewitnesses told Wafa.

Also on Monday, the Israeli army demolished a Palestinian home in the village of Al-Walaja, northwest of Bethlehem.

Forces reportedly stormed the Ain Jwiza area, the head of the Al-Walaja Village Council said, and destroyed a house belonging to resident Fadi Abu Rizq, with an area of ​​85 square metres.

Israeli forces frequently demolish Palestinian homes under the pretext that properties were built without a legal permit. Palestinian homes are also subject to destruction in a bid to "punish" those suspected of carrying attacks against Israelis.

Israeli destruction of Palestinian homes has also increased significantly since the start of the war in Gaza, particularly in Area C, which constitutes about 60 percent of the West Bank area.

The Israeli military also destructed a petrol station in the town of Hizma, north of occupied Jerusalem, amid confrontations with residents.

Eyewitnesses told Wafa that the Al-Salam gas station bulldozed by the army, which belonged to Al-Khatib family in Hizma.

During the demolition process, confrontations broke out with the Israeli army, who fired poison gas bombs, stun grenades, and live bullets towards citizens and their homes.