Two Palestinian boys were shot and killed by Israeli forces in Jenin, in the north of the occupied West Bank, the Palestinian Ministry of Health has said.
As talks to extend the truce between Israel and Hamas continued on Wednesday before a looming deadline, the Israeli army raided the Jenin refugee camp, causing widespread destruction and killing four Palestinians, including two children.
Adam Samer al-Ghoul, 8, was shot in the head and Basil Suleiman Abu al-Wafa, 15, died after he was shot in the chest.
The Israeli army forced residents of the ad-Damj neighbourhood to leave their homes at gunpoint and destroyed streets in the neighbourhood, Palestinian news agency Wafa reported citing security and local sources.
The army also bombed a house using a drone, the report said.
In a joint statement to Israeli media, the Border Police, Israeli army and Shin Bet security agency said the army had killed two people reportedly involved in armed resistance, including a key leader. They were named as Muhammad Zubeidi and Hussam Hanoun. The statement acknowledged that two more people were killed amid clashes in the area.
An Israeli army spokesperson did not immediately respond to Al Jazeera’s request for further comment.
According to the statement, 17 Palestinians were arrested in the raid.
CCTV footage circulating online shows a boy falling on a street in the camp after being hit by a bullet. Another video appears to show the other boy being hit on the street and calling for help as more bullets are fired on the ground around him.
The older boy can be seen struggling on the ground in apparent agony for at least half a minute.
Al Jazeera’s Charles Stratford, reporting from Jenin, said people were “shocked” at the scale of Israel’s latest raid on the refugee camp, which has been subject to several Israeli incursions since the war began.
“They’re describing it as the largest raid since October 7,” Stratford said, referring to the start of the most recent Israel-Hamas war.
“We spoke to the owner of a house that was destroyed. He said that it was about 5am [03:00 GMT] this morning when Israeli soldiers surrounded the house. He then became aware of potentially at least one Palestinian fighter – possibly two – hiding in his home,” he added.
“What subsequently happened is that the Palestinian fighters were killed as the house was destroyed.”
The Palestinian Red Crescent Society said Israeli forces blocked its medics from reaching the camp, “despite the presence of injured persons who need help and whose life is threatened”.
🚨Israeli occupation forces prevent PRCS paramedics 🚑from reaching a besieged neighbourhood in Jenin Refugee Camp, despite the presence of injured persons who need help and whose life is threatened.#Jenin #NotATarget#IHL pic.twitter.com/ATCVDmBKHD
— PRCS (@PalestineRCS) November 29, 2023
Israeli army raids have taken place on a daily basis across the West Bank since the war began. According to the Palestinian Prisoner’s Society (PPS) and the Prisoners’ Affairs Authority, Israeli forces arrested 35 Palestinians in the occupied West Bank within the past 24 hours, including a 12-year-old.
The total number of people arrested since October 7 is now more than 3,325, the PPS said.
At least 242 Palestinians, including more than 50 children, have been killed in the occupied West Bank since October 7. More than 2,750 have been injured.
