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Israel-Palestine war: Six Palestinians killed during Israeli operation in West Bank

Minor among those killed after Israeli drone strike targets Nur Shams refugee camp near Tulkarm
Palestinian men stand by debris outside a damaged building in the aftermath of an Israeli raid in the Nur Shams refugee camp near the northern city of Tulkarm in the occupied West Bank on 27 December 2023 (AFP)
Palestinian men stand by a damaged building following an Israeli raid on the Nur Shams refugee camp near Tulkarm, in the occupied West Bank, 27 December 2023 (AFP)

Six Palestinians, including one minor, were killed and several others wounded following an Israeli operation north of the occupied West Bank on Wednesday morning, according to the Palestinian health ministry. 

"Six martyrs killed by the [Israeli] occupation and some who were seriously wounded were transported to the Thabet Thabet government hospital in Tulkarm," the ministry said in a statement.

The six were killed by an Israeli drone strike on the Nur Shams refugee camp in Tulkarm, according to Wafa news agency. 

They were identified as Ahmed Anwar Hamarsha, 19, Ahmed Abdel Rahman Issa, 19, Adham Mohammed Fahmawi, 19, Yazan Ahmed Wahid Fahmawi, 23, Fares Hossam Fahmawi, 29, and Hamza Ahmed Mustafa Fahmawi, 17. 

At least four others were wounded, one of whom is in a critical condition, Wafa added. 

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Israeli forces stopped ambulances from reaching the wounded for around an hour, according to the Palestinian Red Crescent. 

The head of the Tulkarm Doctors Syndicate, Radwan Balibla, said that an Israeli soldier stabbed one of the wounded inside the ambulance, pointing out that other injuries were a result of beatings with rifle butts, kicks, and punches, Wafa reported.

In addition to the drone strike, Israeli soldiers also stormed Tulkarm and the nearby Nur Shams camp.

Nur Shams is home to 13,519 Palestinian refugees officially registered by the United Nations Relief and Works Agency (Unrwa). 

Several homes were raided in the camp, Wafa reported, while Israeli military bulldozers razed infrastructure in the camp's main streets, its square, and the al-Manshiya neighbourhood.

More than 300 Palestinians in the West Bank have been killed by Israeli forces and settlers since war broke out in Gaza on 7 October, according to the Palestinian health ministry.

At least 20,915 people have been killed by Israel and 54,918 wounded in the besieged enclave since then.

Israel launched a war on Gaza after around 1,200 Israelis were killed during Hamas' surprise attack on southern Israeli communities on 7 October. 

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