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Scene. File. Published by Maan News
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BETHLEHEM (Ma’an) -- Israeli forces detained at least 35 Palestinians in detention raids across the occupied West Bank before dawn on Sunday, including 10 minors who were detained in East Jerusalem, with Israeli forces using live fire to suppress clashes that erupted during a raid into Jenin refugee camp.

Israeli raids in Palestinian towns, villages, and refugee camps are a daily occurrence in the occupied West Bank, including East Jerusalem. The United Nations recorded an average of 95 weekly raids in the occupied West Bank in 2016, and 78 weekly raids on average thus far in 2017.

According to prisoners’ rights group Addameer, 6,500 Palestinians were held in Israeli prisons as of January, including 300 minors and 53 women.

Arbitrary detention raids are the target of an ongoing open-ended hunger strike in Israeli prisons that entered its 14th day on Sunday, where Palestinian prisoners are also denouncing their torture, medical negligence, and the deprivation of family visits by Israeli authorities.

Northern West Bank

Locals told Ma’an that Israeli forces detained three Palestinians from Jenin refugee camp in the northern occupied West Bank, identified as Munir Ahmad Abed al-Rahman Salama, 21, Muslim Saed Masarwa,18, and Amid Ibrahim Arsan, 20, after their homes were raided and searched.

The aggressive raid sparked clashes between locals and Israeli soldiers, and resident of the camp Wiam Hanoun was shot and injured in the foot with a live bullet.

An Israeli army spokesperson told Ma’an they were looking into reports of the clashes, and confirmed that three Palestinians were detained in the camp, one of which she alleged was a “Hamas operative.”

In the northern occupied West Bank district of Nablus, Israeli forces detained two students of al-Najah National University, identified by locals as Mumin Sabah from the town of Asira al-Shamaliya north of Nablus, and Osama Yamin from the village of Tell southwest of Nablus.

According to Jerusalem-based news outlet al-Quds Network, Sabah is a member of Hamas' student wing the Islamic Bloc , and had been pursued by Israeli forces for weeks.

Local sources said Israeli forces detained Rabi Khalid during a raid in Ein Beit al-Mai refugee camp west of Nablus, Asaad Marahil from Nablus city, and an unidentified Palestinian youth from the al-Qasaba area of Nablus’ Old City.

An Israeli army spokesperson confirmed the five detentions in the Nablus area, and alleged that the Palestinian detained in Tell was a Hamas operative.

The Israeli army spokesperson also said that one Palestinian was detained in the village of Dhinnaba in the northern Tulkarem district.

Southern West Bank

Local sources said that Israeli forces also stormed the town of Idhna southwest of Hebron and raided several houses.

The Israeli army said they detained six Palestinians in the town, five of whom were identified by locals as Rafaat Raed Abu Jehisha, Muhammad Abd al-Karim Farraj Allah, Fadi Halim Eslimiya, Nashaat Fadil Eslimiya, and Yossef Ali Awad.

Local sources also said that Firas Hasan Marar was detained during raids in the Hebron district.

Locals said Israeli forces detained two Palestinians in the town of Doha south of Bethlehem, one of whom was identified as Muhammad Hasan Ajamiya. The Israeli army only confirmed one detention in Doha.

East Jerusalem

Muhammad Abu al-Hummus, member of a follow-up committee in the occupied East Jerusalem neighborhood of Issawiya, said that Israeli police escorted by Israeli intelligence officers raided Issawiya and detained 17 Palestinians. Israeli police spokesperson Luba al-Samri confirmed that 17 Palestinians were detained, saying that 10 of them were under 18 years old.

Abu al-Hummus identified the detainees as Adam Kayed Muhmoud, Shadi Muhammad Atiya, Muhammad Abd al-Raouf Mahmoud, Abd al-Qader Muhammad Dari, Rashad Nasser, Mahmoud Khaldoun Mustafa, Bashar Mahmoud, Mahmoud Ramadan Ebied, Muhammad Adnan Ebied, Muneer Kayed Mahmoud, Akram Fadi Mustafa, Thaer Muhammad Mehisin, Ismael Tawfiq Mehisin, Firas Nidal Mahmoud, Amir Munir Dirbas, Nasim Amjad Mehisin, and Odai Issa Ebied.

Israeli forces also ordered Issawiya residents Ahmad Yossef Ebied and Sufian Mahmoud to appear for interrogation with Israeli intelligence.

Abu al-Hummus said that Issawiya has subjected to daily raids by Israeli forces recently, while an ongoing presence of Israeli troops has been deployed throughout the neighborhood's streets and on the rooftops of buildings.

Israeli police have been provoking Palestinian residents and arbitrarily issuing traffic citations, he added, highlighting that Israeli forces dismantled a sit-in tent Thursday that was installed to express support for Palestinian hunger-striking prisoners in Israeli custody.

Israeli police spokesperson Luba al-Samri said were suspected of “involvement in riots, and throwing rocks and Molotov cocktails at Israeli police over the past week.”

She added that eight other Palestinians who were detained in recent days for the “riots” have had their remands extended for further interrogation.

Al-Samri wrote that the detentions were carried out “in accordance to legal issued orders by court,” despite recent reports saying that the ongoing crackdown on Palestinian Jerusalemites has seen violent night raids by Israeli police carried out in breach of protocol and without proper search warrants.

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