In a retaliatory shooting incident in the West Bank, 3 Israeli settlers killed and 6 others injured

At least three Israeli settlers have been killed in a shooting incident in the northern West Bank, amid escalating tensions in the region. The violence follows the ongoing conflict involving Israeli military actions in the Gaza Strip.

Eli Bin, the chief of Israel’s Magen David Adom (MDA) emergency services, reported that an additional six individuals sustained injuries during an attack near the village of al-Funduq, situated east of Qalqilya, on Monday.

In a recent statement, the Israeli military declared that its forces are actively pursuing the assailants responsible for the recent operation. To facilitate the search, roadblocks have been established in the surrounding areas of the incident, and several villages have been cordoned off.

The military reported that armed assailants targeted a bus and several vehicles in an assault near the unauthorized settlement of Kedumim. In a series of intensified operations, Israeli forces have launched additional raids across the occupied West Bank. Meanwhile, the humanitarian crisis in Gaza worsens, with another infant succumbing to hypothermia.

Hamas has praised what it described as a “heroic” reaction to the actions of the Israeli forces, referring to them as the “Zionist enemy.”

The Gaza-based Hamas resistance movement has lauded the “heroic” shooting incident that occurred in the Israeli-occupied West Bank.

Hamas issued a statement on Monday describing the shooting incident in the village of al-Funduq, located east of Qalqilya, as a determined reaction to the continuous actions of the Israeli regime. The organization accused Israel of perpetrating serious offenses against the people of Gaza, maintaining plans to displace residents of the West Bank, and allowing illegal settlers to breach the sanctity of the al-Aqsa Mosque and other revered sites.

The statement further emphasized that the counteractions convey a definitive message to the Israeli forces, underscoring that individuals in the West Bank, the Gaza Strip, and other occupied regions remain steadfast in their resolve to uphold their rights. It asserted that resistance efforts will persist until the cessation of the occupation is fully achieved.

Hamas has urged for intensified resistance actions throughout the occupied territories, aiming to disrupt the security measures of the occupiers and counteract efforts to annex additional Palestinian lands and displace Palestinian populations.

Since Israel initiated military operations against the Gaza Strip in early October 2023, there has been a noticeable increase in casualties in the West Bank. This surge is attributed to the heightened frequency of Israeli raids occurring almost daily in various villages and cities within the occupied territories.

The Palestinian Ministry of Health has reported that at least 838 Palestinians have lost their lives in the West Bank amid ongoing hostilities with Israeli forces and extremist Jewish settlers since the outset of the conflict. In addition, the health ministry disclosed that more than 6,700 Palestinians have sustained injuries during this period.

The ongoing conflict in the Gaza Strip has resulted in the deaths of at least 45,805 Palestinians, with the majority of the casualties reported to be women and children, according to recent reports.