At least 3 Palestinians were killed and 16 others wounded by the Israeli army forces during violent confrontations in the West Bank city of Jenin, Palestinian medical and security sources said.
In a press statement sent to The New Arab, the Ramallah-based health ministry identified the dead as Ahmed Alawana, Abdul Rahman Khazem and Mohammed Alouna, killed by the live fire, and 16 others wounded.
Two of the injured are in critical condition and are undergoing surgery now, added the ministry.
Wessam Baker, the director of Jenin Hospital, said to The New Arab that the nine injuries were by live bullets in their chests.
Palestinian security sources said that Israeli army forces and special units affiliated with it stormed the Jenin camp, accompanied by a bulldozer.
They surrounded the house of Raad Khazem's family, the perpetrator of an attack in Tel Aviv that killed 3 Israelis last April, bombing the house with an anti-armour missile, which led to the escalation of flames and smoke, amid an intense flight of Israeli reconnaissance planes over the camp.
Avichai Adraee, a spokesperson for the Israeli army, said in a press statement that "army forces and special units moved under the direction of the General Security Service (Shin Bet) to arrest two wanted men and surrounded the house they hid in."
The Israeli army spokesperson claimed that after the gunmen launched an explosive device and detonated it against Israel's forces, who then responded by shooting and killing the gunmen.
"Alouna and Khazem were involved in several recent Palestinian attacks, including the shooting of an engineering vehicle belonging to the Ministry of Defense near the Jalameh military checkpoint in Jenin two weeks ago," claimed Adraee, adding that they were planning additional attacks in the near future.
Following the Israeli attack in Jenin, violent confrontations erupted between Palestinian youths and Israeli soldiers, as loud explosions echoed throughout the camp.
Palestinian social activists posted dozens of videos on social media platforms, documenting the Israeli storming, as well as the confrontations with the local youths.
"Without any prior alarm, we heard a heavy fire launched by the Israeli army (...) then we heard an exchange of the firing with Palestinian militants," Mohammed Ahmed, a Jenin-based eyewitness, told The New Arab.
"I decided to document the violently Israeli assault on our area and share my videos on my Twitter and Facebook accounts to let the world see the Israeli crimes against our people" Ahmed added.
Speaking to The New Arab, Akram Rjoub, the governor of Jenin, condemned the "illegal Israeli crimes against the Palestinian people, mainly as the army insists on killing the young people every day."
"Israel will not reach its goal of continuous aggression by targeting Jenin and other cities in the West Bank," the governor said, adding that the Palestinian people will remain on their land until the end of the Israeli occupation and the establishment of their independent state with East Jerusalem as its capital.
"Jenin and its camp will continue to fight until the Israeli occupation is expelled from the entire Palestinian land," Hazem Qassem, the spokesperson of the Gaza-run Islamic Hamas movement, said in a press statement.
"The battle will remain open against the Israeli occupation in all areas of the struggle until the Palestinian people write a victory over them and expel them from all Palestinian land," Qassem added.
The military operation comes in light of the tension in the West Bank for several months between the Israeli army and the Palestinians.
Since the beginning of this year, more than 90 Palestinians have been killed by Israeli bullets, including children and women, according to official Palestinian statistics.
On the other hand, 18 Israelis have been killed since last March, in operations carried out by Palestinians inside Israeli territories.
Israel responded to that by carrying out a wide campaign of arrests focused on the cities of Nablus and Jenin in the northern West Bank, which it says has affected its "wanted", accusing them of being involved in carrying out attacks against its citizens.