Israeli Forces Kill Two Palestinians in West Bank

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Facts

  • Israeli forces killed on Monday two Palestinians identified as Fouad Abed — who Gaza's ruler Hamas group claimed to be its member — and Samer Houshiyeh during a raid on the village of Kafr Dan near Jenin in the West Bank. Three others were reportedly injured.
  • The military wing of Palestinian Pres. Mahmoud Abbas's Fatah party, the Al Aqsa Martyrs' Brigades, later affirmed that Houshiyeh was its member, publishing a previous photo of him posing with rifles.
  • Israeli troops reportedly entered the village to demolish three residential apartments belonging to the families of the alleged murders of an Israeli soldier in September. The army claimed that militants hurled rocks and explosive devices, and eventually opened fire on the soldiers.
  • Maj. Bar Falah, deputy commander of the Nahal Brigade's Reconnaissance Battalion, was killed on Sept. 11 by two Palestinian gunmen near the village of Jalama, north of Jenin, in an attack for which the Al Aqsa Martyrs' Brigades took responsibility.
  • The violence comes as tensions in Israel and the West Bank continue to simmer, with Israel recently electing its most right-leaning government in history and 2022 being the most deadly year for Palestinians since 2006.
  • Following these first Palestinian fatalities since Netanyahu returned to office last week, Palestinian PM Mohammad Shtayyeh in a statement held Israel directly responsible for any escalation or violence that results from "acts of killings and daily incursions."

Sources: Al Jazeera, Associated Press, Wall Street Journal, Jerusalem Post, and Reuters.

Narratives

  • Pro-Palestine, as provided by Middle East Eye. Israeli military action in the West Bank amounts to serious war crimes. Israel practices collective punishment against Palestinians by targeting family members of those involved in resistance to the occupation. Quite simply, Israel's occupation is the main driver of violence, and Israel must be held accountable for the crimes it has committed against the Palestinian people.
  • Pro-Israel, as provided by Times of Israel. Israel's policy of demolishing the homes of known terrorists is not "collective punishment" or a "war crime." Rather, it is a form of deterrence, so the terrorists know that there is a heavy price to pay if they decide to attack Israelis. The only reason Israel has increased its operations in the West Bank is in response to Palestinian terrorism in Israel.

Predictions