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Photos:
Abdul-Rahman Fathi Khazem, 27, Mohammad Hisham Abu Na’sa, 25, Mohammad Mahmoud Barahma, 30, and Ahmad Nathmi Alawna, 26. Published by IMEMC News

A Palestinian hurls a stone at an Israeli army vehicle during clashes after Israeli forces killed Palestinian gunmen in Jenin, on Wednesday. Credit: RANEEN SAWAFTA/ REUTERS Published by Haaretz

Raad Hazem (right), the terrorist who killed three Israelis in Tel Aviv in April, and his brother Abed Fathi who was shot and killed by the army on Wednesday. Published by Haaretz
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by IMEMC News
Sept 28, 2022

Updated: The Palestinian Health Ministry confirmed that Israeli soldiers killed four Palestinians and injured forty-four, some seriously, in a massive invasion of Jenin, in the northern part of the occupied West Bank.

The Ministry said the fourth slain Palestinian has been identified as Mohammad Mahmoud Barahma, 30, from Anzah village, southwest of Jenin.

The Ministry added that the soldiers also shot forty-four Palestinians, including several young men who suffered life-threatening wounds, and children.

Most of the wounded Palestinians were shot in the head, neck, and chest, and several Palestinians were shot in the abdomen area.

Two of the seriously wounded Palestinians have not been identified due to their serious upper-body wounds, and the hospital is appealing to the Palestinians to help identify them and to donate blood.

The soldiers also killed Abdul-Rahman Fathi Khazem, 27, Mohammad Hisham Abu Na’sa, 25, from Jenin refugee camp, and Ahmad Nathmi Alawna, 26, from Jenin city.

The Palestinians announced a general strike in several parts of the occupied West Bank and haled massive protests in Ramallah, Hebron, Nablus, and several other areas of the occupied territory, causing many injuries.

Also, the Palestinian Red Crescent Society (PRCS) said Israeli colonizers invaded Madama village near Nablus and injured eight Palestinians.

Sep 28, 2022, at 12:18: Updated 2: The Health Ministry has confirmed that the soldiers killed three Palestinians, Abdul-Rahman Fathi Khazem, 27, Mohammad Mahmoud Barahma, 30, and Ahmad Nathmi Alawna, 26. At least Forty-four Palestinians have been injured, three serious, including one whose skull was shattered by a bullet fired by an Israeli army sharpshooter.

Abdul-Rahman was ambushed between Palestinian homes before the soldiers executed him before he noticed them, eyewitnesses have confirmed.

He is the brother of Ra’ad Fathi Khazem, 29, who, on April 8, 2022, was killed by Israeli forces while hiding near a mosque in Jaffa. The soldiers invaded the Jenin refugee camp to abduct his father.

The massive Israeli invasion of Jenin and Jenin refugee camp is still ongoing amidst ongoing protests and exchanges of fire with Palestinian resistance fighters.

The Health Ministry said the number of wounded Palestinians arrived to at least forty-four, including several serious injuries.

One of the wounded Palestinians is a seriously injured child who the Israeli soldiers shot with two live rounds in the chest and the thigh, severely a main artery.

Ambulances are still moving wounded Palestinians to hospitals in Jenin, while many are still trying to reach the areas of protests, especially in Jenin refugee camps and near Ibn Sina Hospital in Jenin city.

Some of the wounded were shot in the head and the chest; the extent of their wounds is to be determined.

Palestinian civilians are also using their cars to transport wounded Palestinians to hospitals.

Updated:
Israeli Soldiers Kill One Palestinian, Injure Fourteen, In Jenin
Sep 28, 2022, at 11:18

Updated 1: The Health Ministry has confirmed that the soldiers killed three Palestinians, Abed Fathi Khazem, 27, Mohammad Mahmoud Al-Wanna, 30, and Ahmad Nathmi Alawna, 26.

The Health Ministry has confirmed that the soldiers killed Ahmad Nathmi Alawna, 24, from Jenin, after shooting him with a live round in the head. The soldiers also shot and injured fourteen, including at least two who suffered serious wounds.

The Health Ministry said an Israeli sharpshooter shot Ahmad with a live round in the head during an exchange of fire near the main entrance of the refugee camp, inflicting very serious wounds before he succumbed to critical injuries at a hospital in Jenin.

The Health Ministry also confirmed nine injuries, including two who suffered life-threatening wounds, and added that the latest injury was when one Palestinian was shot with a high0velicty gas bomb in the thigh was standing near several medics.

Also among the wounded was a child who was shot in the leg, the Health Ministry stated.

The Israeli army is ongoing with its invasion and is using armed drones and sharpshooters, Palestine TV said.

Palestine TV added that the army repeatedly pretended to be withdrawing from the area and waited until dozens of Palestinians gathered in the streets before advancing and firing live rounds on them.

The soldiers also frequently targeted Palestinian ambulances, medics, and reporters with live fire to force them to leave.

The soldiers also fired many live rounds at several schools in the area, causing damage, and anxiety attacks among the children in a kindergarten.

Amry sharpshooters were still operating in the area, and continue to fire at Palestinians in the streets, amidst ongoing protests.

The number of injuries could be higher than confirmed because the soldiers are still isolating the invaded area, and are attacking medics, ambulances and journalists.

Israeli army sharpshooters are still occupying rooftops of several buildings and are firing at Palestinian protesters. The army’s armed drones also continue to operate in the area.

Updated From:
Israeli Soldiers Injure Nine Palestinians, Two Seriously, In Jenin
Sep 28, 2022, at 10:25

On Wednesday, dozens of armored Israeli military vehicles invaded the areas surrounding the Jenin refugee camp in the northern West Bank city of Jenin and surrounded a home before firing a missile at it, in addition to shooting at least nine Palestinians, two seriously.

Palestine TV said the armored military vehicles, including two bulldozers, surrounded the family home of Ra’ad Fathi Khazem, 29, who, on April 8, 2022, was killed by Israeli forces while hiding near a mosque in Jaffa, before an armed drone fired a missile at it.

The army said its soldiers invaded Jenin to arrests Ra’ad’s father and his brother and alleged that the brother is responsible for firing live rounds at soldiers of the Israeli Combat Engineering Corps near the Al-Jalama roadblock two weeks earlier.

The home is at the entrance of the refugee camp, and the army fired the missile at it without invading the refugee camp because it was expecting heavy armed resistance.

The attack led to protests in several parts of Jenin before the soldiers targeted the Palestinians with live fire and fired many rounds at ambulances and medical teams trying to evacuate wounded Palestinian.

Dr. Wisam Bakr, the director of Khalil Suleiman governmental hospital in Jenin, said the soldiers shot two Palestinians with live fire in the chest and the head, inflicting life-threatening wounds, in addition to shooting at least two seven young men. Palestine TV said one of the wounded is the brother of Ra’ad Hazem.

The soldiers also closed the Jenin refugee camp and surrounding areas and attacked Palestinian journalists to prevent them from entering the city to document the invasion and the unfolding events.

Eyewitnesses said the soldiers invaded several tall buildings and ransacked them before occupying their rooftop to use them as firing posts for their sharpshooters.

The sharpshooters on top of the buildings, and others hiding behind trees and homes, fired many live rounds at Palestinian protesters, including many rounds toward journalists and press vehicles.

Palestinian children in schools in the invaded area in Jenin and Jenin refugee camps were told to hide under the desks and behind the concrete walls in their classrooms due to the intensity of Israeli army fire, especially the sharpshooters.

School administrations said they advised the children to remain in their educational facilities because of the ongoing invasion and the extensity of Israeli army fires in the streets.

Salam Taher, the director of the Education Ministry in Jenin, said many children suffered severe anxiety attacks, and added that the children in classes on the upper floors were taken to the lower levels to avoid direct Israeli army fire.

She added that the schools are taking all precautionary measures to ensure the safety of the children and staffers in the schools.

Furthermore, the army deployed dozens of additional soldiers, closed and surrounded Jenin city, and deployed many armored vehicles to surround several areas, especially near and around the Jenin refugee camp.

Reports remain scarce due to Israel’s isolation and closure of the Jenin refugee camp and the fact that the army is preventing journalists and medics from entering it.

Ambulances, medics and journalists are trying to enter the refugee camp, but the soldiers continue to prevent them and are threatening to target them with live fire.

Armed military drones are still flying over Jenin and Jenin refugee camp.
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Four Killed, 44 Wounded in Israeli Army West Bank Raid, Palestinians Report

Among the Palestinians killed is the brother of Raad Hazem, who shot and killed three Israelis in a terror attack in Tel Aviv in April

by Jack Khoury, Josh Breiner, Yaniv Kubovich, and Ben Samuels for Haaretz
Sep 28, 2022

The Fatah movement on Wednesday called for a "day of rage" across the West Bank, including a general strike and march to checkpoints, following an Israeli military raid in Jenin, in which four people were killed and 44 were wounded.

Earlier on Wednesday, Israeli forces surrounded the former home of Raad Hazem, a Palestinian terrorist who killed three people in April, and killed his brother, Fathi, and three additional wanted men in the Jenin refugee camp, according to Israeli officials. Palestinians say that 44 people were wounded during the exchange of gunfire.

The military said that Abed Fathi Hazem and Ahmed Nazmi Alawneh were involved in several shootings over the past few weeks, including the September 13 incident in which a Defense Ministry tractor was shot at. It added that they were in the planning stages of additional terror attacks.

The Al-Aqsa Martyrs Brigade, Fatah's military wing, announced that three of those killed were senior commanders in the organization in the Jenin region, and the fourth a senior Islamic Jihad member.

The announcement also identified Alawneh as a battalion commander, and Alonah as an engineer specializing in assembling bombs. The Islamic Jihad member was identified as Muhammed Abu Nasa.

"We will not hesitate or be deterred to act against anybody who tries to hurt Israeli citizens or our security forces," Prime Minister Yair Lapid said following the raid.

Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas's spokesperson, Nabil Abu Rudeineh, said after the raid that "the Israeli occupation still undervalues the lives of our Palestinian people, and is tampering with security and stability by continuing its policy of escalation."

Abu Rudeineh added that "Israel and the United States of America have lost their credibility by demanding calm and maintaining stability, while they are practicing all forms of escalation, killing and destruction... Condemnations alone are no longer enough."

U.S. State Department spokesman Ned Price meanwhile said Washington was "deeply concerned by the deteriorating security situation in the West Bank" and that "[t]his year alone, more than 100 Palestinians have been killed in the West Bank and more than 30 in Gaza, while more than 20 Israelis and other civilians have been killed in terrorist attacks." He urged "all parties to do everything in their power to deescalate the situation and return to a period of calm."

Price further said that while the United States and other international partners stand ready to help, they "cannot substitute for vital actions by the parties to mitigate conflict and to restore calm."

U.S. officials have been closely monitoring the deteriorating conditions in the West Bank, while working to ensure Israel and the Palestinian Authority continue security coordination. The PA has struggled to maintain security amid undergoing an economic crisis that has only further weakened its control and legitimacy. Barbara Leaf, the highest-ranking U.S. diplomat for the Middle East, recently visited Israel and the West Bank, where she implored all parties to help stabilize the PA in order to prevent a major crisis.

Over the past few weeks, Jenin has been a flash point for violence. Earlier this month, an Israeli military officer was shot and killed during an exchange of gunfire with Palestinian militants near the Jalameh checkpoint, just north of Jenin.

Spurred by the incidents in Jenin, clashes also erupted in several other places in the West Bank Wednesday afternoon.

One Palestinian was seriously wounded by live fire during clashes near the Beit El checkpoint and was taken to the hospital in Ramallah in mortal condition, the Palestinian Red Crescent said. Two others were moderately wounded by rubber bullets during those clashes.

Another 34 people were wounded in clashes near Hawara, south of Nablus, the Red Crescent said. One was hit by a rubber bullet and taken for medical treatment; the others were treated on the spot after inhaling tear gas. In addition, 14 people were injured by tear gas inhalation near Qalqilyah.

Palestinians said that during the Hawara clashes, a journalist was wounded when an Israeli gas grenade hit him in the leg.

Israel Defense Forces Chief of Staff Aviv Kochavi conducted a situation assessment at Central Command Wednesday afternoon in light of the escalation in the West Bank. The head of Central Command, Maj. Gen. Yehuda Fuchs, and the commander of the Judea and Samaria Division, Brig. Gen. Avi Blut, also participated.

“This morning, we carried out a complex operation in the Jenin refugee camp,” Kochavi said at the meeting. “It was executed resolutely and professionally, and its purpose was to thwart a concrete threat. We’ll continue preparing for the entire spectrum of scenarios, and we’ll operate as needed anywhere, anytime to ensure Israelis’ security.”
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Editorial | The Occupation Is Spinning Out of Control
Haaretz, Sept 30, 2022

The violent clash between soldiers and armed Palestinians in the Jenin refugee camp on Wednesday, in which four Palestinians, including two wanted men, were killed, may be the most serious incident that occurred recently, but it shouldn’t be seen as an unusual one. Over the last year, a difficult military situation has developed in the West Bank; dozens of Palestinians have been killed, hundreds have been arrested and the number of warnings of planned terror attacks has soared.

Some of these developments can be attributed to the fact that the army routinely breaks into Palestinian homes to carry out missions of marginal importance, the unbridled clashes between settlers and Palestinians and the fact that the Palestinian security services have refrained from taking forceful action against armed militants.

But this narrow perspective completely ignores the fundamentals that are driving this Palestinian uprising – the expansion of the settlements, the expropriation of land, the erection of hundreds of checkpoints, the severe violations of human rights and, above all, the systematic crushing of every initiative for diplomatic negotiations. Israel assumed it could force the Palestinian Authority to act against terrorists and terrorist organizations even though it was failing to uphold its own part in the agreements it signed with the PA.

In response to the growing violence, the solutions being proposed are primarily tactical, like reducing the scope of the army’s operations in the West Bank or, alternatively, pinpoint operations and sophisticated weaponry like drones and remotely operated guns that shoot ammunition at demonstrators, and ultimately, even a large-scale military operation. These ideas show Israel has concluded that there’s no point in security cooperation with the PA, since it expects the authority to collapse in any case, and has abandoned any attempt to resume dialogue with it.

These working assumptions aren’t disconnected from reality, but neither are they necessitated by reality. Those pushing for a military operation in Jenin can’t guarantee that such an operation won’t ignite the entire West Bank as well as the Gaza Strip. Those pushing the PA into collapse aren’t prepared to run Palestinian areas of the West Bank without the PA. And those clinging to political unfeasibility as a justification for running away from negotiations will find themselves facing a military reality that dictates political decisions instead of vice versa. The occupation is showing signs of losing control, and despite the imminent election, the prime minister must stop this headlong military rush and keep Israel from sliding into a war whose results can’t be foreseen.

The above article is Haaretz’s lead editorial, as published in the Hebrew and English newspapers in Israel.