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The Israeli military operation in the occupied West Bank enters its eighth day amid ongoing escalation that has led to the martyrdom, injury and arrest of dozens of Palestinians, while countries are pushing for an emergency meeting of the UN Security Council to defuse tensions.
The Palestinian Red Crescent reported, at dawn on Wednesday, that a young Palestinian man was injured by live bullets, during the occupation forces’ storming of the old Askar camp, east of the city of Nablus.
The Palestinian News Agency "Wafa" reported that the occupation forces stormed the eastern area of the city, and raided the Balata and Askar al-Qadeem camps, which led to the outbreak of clashes during which the occupation soldiers fired live bullets, gas and sound bombs.
WAFA added that a number of occupation vehicles stormed several neighborhoods in the city, and the village of Qasra to the south, raided the homes of its residents, ransacked their contents, and arrested 3 Palestinian youths.
The occupation army sent military reinforcements to the Jalazone camp, north of Ramallah, in light of its ongoing storming of the camp for more than 3 hours and the arrest of more than 12 Palestinians.
In Tulkarm camp, the Red Crescent announced that 8 Palestinians suffered from suffocation as a result of a fire caused by the occupation forces detonating explosive devices they found in the camp.
Meanwhile, the Israeli aggression on the city of Jenin and its camp continues. Local sources said that the occupation army is continuing to fire heavily inside the camp's neighborhoods.
Yesterday evening, Tuesday, the Red Crescent said in a statement that its crews transferred to the hospital "two people injured by live bullets in the leg, a young man (22 years old) and a child (7 years old) during the occupation forces' storming of the town of Adh Dhahiriya, south of Hebron (south)."
Eyewitnesses also said that the occupation army stormed a football field and "arrested trainees of different ages," while WAFA confirmed that a child was injured by live occupation bullets in the city of Qalqilya.
Settler gatherings
In parallel with the Israeli military operation in the cities and camps of the West Bank, Israeli settlers continue their aggression and threats against the Palestinians.
In this context, WAFA said that dozens of settlers gathered near the town of Adh Dhahiriya, south of Hebron, "and closed the road and chanted for the killing of Arabs," while dozens of other settlers gathered at the entrance to the town of Idhna and closed the road there.
These gatherings in the Palestinian areas came in response to calls from settlers that were circulated on social media, claiming to demand “restoring security” in the West Bank.
According to WAFA, the settlers chanted slogans calling for the deportation of Palestinians, incited their killing, and raised banners with inflammatory phrases calling for the implementation of more Israeli crimes against Palestinians in the West Bank.
The Hebrew website "Walla" quoted military sources as saying that the occupation army decided to extend the period of its military operation in the Jenin camp, which was scheduled to end yesterday, Tuesday, by order of the Minister of Defense, on the pretext of obtaining intelligence information about the military infrastructure in the camp.
The sources added that "the increasing warnings in the southern West Bank may lead to a large-scale operation if the security situation deteriorates."
Security Council meeting
In light of the continued Israeli escalation in the West Bank, Algeria called yesterday, Tuesday, for an emergency meeting of the UN Security Council to discuss developments in the Palestinian territories.
Algerian International Radio (official) said that the invitation came "in coordination with the Palestinian mission to the United Nations in New York," explaining that the upcoming meeting is expected to be scheduled by the Slovenian presidency of the Security Council before the end of this week.
She added that the Security Council meeting would allow members to affirm "their support for an immediate ceasefire in Gaza and to renew their commitment to the principle of a two-state solution as the only way to achieve lasting and just peace in the Middle East."
The Security Council meeting will also allow member states to "affirm their opposition to the approach of the Zionist occupation authorities aimed at undermining any hope of establishing a Palestinian state and denying the historical rights of the Palestinian people," according to the radio.
In parallel with its war on Gaza, the Israeli occupation army expanded its operations and settlers escalated their attacks in the West Bank, resulting in a total of 685 Palestinians being killed and about 5,700 injured, according to the Palestinian Ministry of Health.
The Israeli war - with American support - on Gaza resulted in more than 135 thousand Palestinian martyrs and wounded, most of them children and women, and more than 10 thousand missing, amid massive destruction and famine that killed dozens of children.