Two Palestinian men shot and injured in Israeli raid on town near Jenin

Two Palestinian men were shot and injured by Israeli forces Friday night during a raid on the town of Burqin, west of the occupied West Bank city of Jenin.

Israeli military vehicles stormed the town, where they were confronted by residents and members of the Al-Quds Brigades, which serves as the military wing of the Palestinian Islamic Jihad movement, according to eyewitnesses.

اندلاع اشتباكات مسلحة مع قوات الاحتلال في بلدة برقين غرب #جنين pic.twitter.com/Bf52Dg2X2V

— وكالة شهاب للأنباء (@ShehabAgency) April 7, 2023

The group confirmed to Turkish Anadolu agency that they engaged in armed clashes with Israeli troops, but did not give any further details.

The Palestinian health ministry said that medical staff at the Jenin Government Hospital are dealing with "two injuries [as a result of fired Israeli] live bullets from the town of Burqin, [which are] a moderate injury to the chest, and a minor injury in the foot".

On Saturday, Israeli forces raided Tulkarm from its eastern entrance, stationing themselves in the vicinity of the Nour Shams camp, before deploying their snipers in the area opposite the camp, according to the official Palestinian WAFA news agency.

More Israeli-induced violence was reported from the village of Kufeirit, located 16 kilometres west of Jenin, where a number of Palestinians were suffocated by tear gas launched by Israeli forces. Israeli soldiers also beat two young men, local witnesses told WAFA.

Israeli forces have intensified their raids on Palestinian towns and communities in the West Bank - notably the cities of Nablus and Jenin - after Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu came back to power in November 2022, leading to the formation of Israel’s most far-right government ever.

In February, Israeli forces killed 11 Palestinians in a deadly raid on Nablus, with tens of injuries in addition to some 250 cases of asphyxiation with tear gas.

In January, nine people, including a 61-year old woman, were killed in what was described as a massacre in Jenin.

In 2023 alone, 95 Palestinians have been killed by Israeli forces and settlers across the West Bank and east Jerusalem, which Tel Aviv has occupied since 1967.