Shatha Hammad
Middle East Eye / September 14, 2022
Israeli army said one of its officers was killed ‘during an exchange of fire’ near a checkpoint in the West Bank.
An Israeli soldier and two Palestinians were killed in clashes near a checkpoint in the occupied West Bank on Wednesday, the army and the Palestinian health ministry said.
The army said that before dawn, Israeli forces intercepted two Palestinians, one of them an officer in the Palestinian Authority, approaching the Jalameh checkpoint, north of Jenin, and an exchange of fire ensued.
The Palestinians killed an army officer and were shot dead by the troops, it added. The soldier was later identified as Major Bar Falach (30) who was the deputy commander of the Nahal Brigade’s Special Reconnaissance Unit.
The Palestinian health ministry confirmed “the martyrdom” of Ahmed Ayman Abed (23) and Abdul Rahman Hani Abed (22) who are cousins from the village of Kafr Dan northwest of Jenin.
The two young men hail from the Fatah, according to an official from the movement.
“These operations did not come out of nowhere. They came in response to the Israeli crimes that are committed daily,” Jamal Huwail, a member of the Revolutionary Council in the Fatah movement, told Middle East Eye. “We cannot remain silent about them, and we cannot stand by and watch.”
‘They chose the path of resistance’
Ahmed’s uncle Murad Abed told MEE that the army, which later declared that the checkpoint will be closed for traffic until Friday, had summoned the father to confirm the identity of Ahmed. Murad was released after hours of questioning and was not allowed to see the bodies.
According to Murad, Ahmed had been working for four years with the Palestinian security services’ intelligence branch after graduating from the Al-Istiqlal University with a degree in security, military and police sciences.
Abdul Rahman was a labourer in agriculture and construction and has previously worked inside Israel, Murad added, saying the family was shocked to hear the news of their death.
“As a family, we dreamed that the two young men would realize their dreams in life and have families in Kafr Dan like other people of their age,” Murad said.
“But they choose the path of resisting the occupation. They couldn’t remain silent about its crimes.”
Tensions come as Israeli forces intensify near-daily raid-and-arrest operations in various parts of the West Bank, which often lead to the wounding or killing of Palestinians.
More than 150 Palestinians have been killed by Israeli forces this year across the Gaza Strip, the occupied West Bank and East Jerusalem.
At least 100 people have been killed in the West Bank alone, making it the deadliest year in the Palestinian territory since 2015.
Shatha Hammad is a Palestinian freelance journalist
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Two Palestinians and one Israeli soldier die in West Bank violence
The National / September 14, 2022
Palestinian health ministry confirms ‘the martyrdom of two young men’ near an Israeli checkpoint.
Two Palestinian gunmen and an Israeli soldier were shot dead near an Israeli army checkpoint at Jalameh, the Israeli government and the Palestinian health ministry said on Wednesday.
The exchange of gunfire occurred near Jenin in the Israeli-occupied West Bank, which has suffered regular bouts of violence this year, at one point leading to a major escalation in the Hamas-controlled Gaza strip which left 44 people dead.
Palestinian official news agency Wafa identified the dead Palestinians as Ahmed Ayman Ibrahim Abed, 23, and Abdul Rahman Hani Subhi Abed, 22. “An IDF [army] officer was killed overnight during operational activity adjacent to the Gilboa Crossing during an exchange of fire with Palestinian terrorists,” an army statement said.
The Palestinian health ministry confirmed “the martyrdom of the two young men” in clashes near the checkpoint north of Jenin known to Palestinians as Jalameh.
Security has been tightened as Israeli football club Maccabi Haifa host French football team Paris Saint-Germain in a Champions League tie later on Wednesday at their base just 60 kilometres from Jenin.
Wednesday’s deaths are the latest in a flare-up that began in mid-March.
Palestinian rights groups say more than 100 Palestinians have been killed so far in 2022, in West Bank violence and a brief conflict between Israeli forces and a militia in Gaza, which caused significant damage to the densely populated coastal enclave, home to more than two million Palestinians.
There have been deadly attacks on Israeli targets and in response, Israel has launched almost nightly raids on West Bank towns and cities in which dozens of Palestinians were killed, including fighters.
Last week, armed forces chief Lt Gen Aviv Kohavi said about “1,500 wanted people were arrested and hundreds of attacks prevented” in the operations.
Tensions in Jenin
The Palestinian armed group Hamas lauded the Israeli soldier’s death, but neither confirmed that its fighters were involved in the gun battle.
A Hamas spokesperson praised the “heroic operation that was carried out by the resistance fighters”.
The Israeli army said the overnight clash came after it had pursued “two suspects” who were spotted “approximately 100 meters” from a security fence.
The Jalameh checkpoint is a major through-fare for goods coming into the West Bank from Israel.
Twelve other Palestinians were arrested in overnight raids across the West Bank, WAFA said.
Jenin local authorities announced a city-wide strike in response to the two deaths, which also sparked a solidarity march for their families.
Israel has occupied the West Bank since 1967, when it captured the territory from Jordan.
