Holly Johnston
The National / August 18, 2024
Militant group said the men were key figures in occupied West Bank operations.
An Israeli air strike on the occupied West Bank killed two Hamas leaders on Saturday, the militant group has confirmed, as Israeli attacks continued on war-torn Gaza.
Raafat Dawasi and Ahmed Abu Ara were killed in the strike on their vehicle near the city of Jenin, the group said.
Hamas’ Al-Qassam Brigades said Dawasi was its Jenin commander and Mr Abu Ara a senior figure in the group’s West Bank operations. Both had carried out attacks against Israel in the past months. The strike will only lead to an increase in Hamas attacks, it added.
The Israeli army said the two were involved in planning a West Bank shooting attack which killed an Israeli man last week.
A passer-by was injured by shrapnel from the strike, according to the official Palestinian news agency WAFA.
A total of 635 people, including 147 children, have been killed and 5,400 wounded in Israeli attacks across the West Bank since October, according to figures from Palestinian authorities.
The Israeli army has launched lengthy raids into the West Bank since October and increased its use of deadly drones, while settler attacks on towns and villages have also increased.
Raids were reported on the Balata refugee camp and the city of Jericho just hours after the strike.
It comes as Israeli attacks also continue on Gaza, where more than 40,000 people have been confirmed killed since the war began in October 7.
Sunday morning strikes killed at least 20 people in the enclave, according to WAFA.
A mother and her six children were killed in an air strike on their apartment in Deir al-Balah, while the death toll from earlier strikes on Abasan al-Kabira and Nuseirat refugee camp rose to eight.
Rescue crews retrieved the bodies of four people from under the rubble of two residential apartments in Jabalia refugee camp, where several others were wounded.
One person was also killed and several others injured in a strike on Gaza city, where heavy bombing and artillery shelling was reported in several neighbourhoods.
Intense attacks were also reported on the southern city of Rafah.
‘Confront Netanyahu’
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken is due in Israel on Sunday, his ninth trip to the Middle East since the Gaza war broke out.
Blinken is expected to meet Israeli leaders before truce talks resume in Cairo in the coming days.
Months-long efforts to end the war continue, with the Israeli team on Saturday expressing “cautious optimism” on reaching an agreement based on a proposal put forward by US President Joe Biden in May, while a senior Hamas official dismissed “American diktats” in negotiations.
The Palestinian group has boycotted the talks, held in Qatar.
The statement, from Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office, came as hostage families continued large-scale protests in Tel Aviv, Jerusalem, Haifa and Be’er Sheba on Saturday night, demanding the PM accept a deal and secure the release of their loved ones.
Protests were also held outside his private residence in the northern city of Caesarea.
“Israel is at a fateful crossroads. This is decision time,” Haaretz quoted Einav, the mother of the hostage Matan Zangauker, as saying at a rally.
“Don’t be afraid to confront Netanyahu,” she said to the negotiation team.
Holly Johnston – Breaking News reporter
