Three Palestinian teenagers detained in West Bank raids

Occupying Israeli forces detained three teenage boys during overnight raids in the West Bank.

Two Palestinian 14-year-olds were detained in apparently unrelated cases in the towns of Silwad and Batoniya on Monday night.

One 14-year-old teen from the town of Silwad was detained while he was around the illegal Israeli settlement of Ofra, security sources told Palestinian Authority's news agency Wafa.

The other teenager was arrested in the town of Batoniya town to the west of Ramallah while he was with his father on their land, situated behind the separation barrier.

A third teenager, a 15-year-old teen in Tuqu town east of Bethlehem, was detained after Israeli forces raided his family home.

The detentions occurred during widespread raids across the occupied West Bank, which resulted in the total detention of 15 Palestinians.

Sweeping raids in the occupied West Bank are standard practice by Israeli forces and are often carried without warrants. 

Israel has occupied the West Bank illegally since 1967, and commits various abuses against Palestinian civilians, human rights groups say.

More than 700,000 Jewish Israelis live in settlements in the occupied West Bank and East Jerusalem, in constructions considered illegal under international law.

The Oslo agreement of 1995 divided the occupied West Bank into three zones: Area A, Area B, and Area C.

Area A is under the administrative and security control of the Palestinian Authority (PA). Area B's administration is controlled by the PA, with Israel controlling security. Area C is under full administrative and security control of Israel.