Palestinian death toll rises to six after Israeli raid on Jenin

A sixth Palestinian man died on Tuesday from wounds sustained in an Israeli attack on the occupied West Bank city of Jenin the day before.

The Palestinian health ministry named Amjad al-Jas, 48, as the sixth and oldest Palestinian to be killed during yesterday's heavy military raid. 

According to Palestinian media outlet Arab48, Amjad’s 22-year-old son, Waseem Amjad Aref al-Jas, was also killed by Israeli forces in January of this year during a similar raid on Jenin that killed 10 Palestinians. 

The youngest victim from yesterday’s attack was Ahmed Youssef Saqr, 15. The Palestinian health ministry said Israeli forces also killed 21-year-old Khaled Azzam Darwish, Qassam Faisal Abu Sariya, 29, Qais Majdi Jabareen, 21, and Ahmed Daraghmeh, 19.

Israel deployed an estimated 120 military vehicles in Jenin on Monday, backed by Apache helicopters which it used to attack Palestinian targets for the first time in the West Bank since 2002. Snipers were also deployed overlooking the city.

The Jenin Brigade, a local armed resistance group, said its fighters had fired at an Israeli helicopter, and had managed to damage Israeli military vehicles with gunfire and ambushes, according to reports.

The assault wounded at least 91 Palestinians as well.

The security situation in the occupied West Bank has been deteriorating for over a year, with Israel launching repeated incursions into Jenin and other locations such as the city of Nablus.

At least eight Israeli soldiers were reported to have been wounded in Monday morning’s raid, which went on for several hours. Israeli forces had to retrieve wounded soldiers and immobilised vehicles during the raid.

Israel said it entered Jenin to arrest 36-year-old Hamas activist Assem Abu al-Haija from the Jabriyat neighbourhood on the outskirts of the northern West Bank city. 

Israel’s government is reportedly putting heavy pressure on security forces to launch an extensive military operation in the northern West Bank.

The army is said to oppose a major operation, but Israeli newspaper Haaretz reported that Shin Bet, the domestic security service, is gradually changing its mind.

Israeli forces and settlers have killed at least 162 Palestinians this year, including 26 children.

A total of 128 fatalities have been recorded in the West Bank and East Jerusalem and a further 34 in the Gaza Strip.

Palestinians have killed at least 20 Israelis in the same period.