2 Hamas leaders among dozens of detainees

The Israeli Occupation Forces (IOF) carried out overnight and at dawn Wednesday a large-scale raid and arrest campaign across the West Bank and occupied Jerusalem. Two leaders in Hamas Movement were among the detainees. In Jenin, Israeli forces arrested the former minister for prisoners’ affairs and the leader in Hamas Movement Wasfi Qubaha after violently breaking into his house and detaining his family members in one single room.  Qubaha spent more than 12 years behind Israeli bars in separate arrests. In Tulkarem, Israeli forces also detained the leader in the Movement Ra’afat Nasif from his house.

Nasif spent several years in Israeli jails including two years in administrative detention. An ex-detainee was also arrested in occupied Jerusalem, while another detainee was rounded up near Jenin. In Bethlehem, Israeli forces stormed different areas surrounding the city before arresting two young men and summoning three others for investigation. In al-Khalil, a similar raid and search campaign was carried out throughout the city.

Several detainees were rounded up during the campaign. On the other hand, a group of Israeli settlers attacked overnight Palestinian homes in Tel al-Rumaidah in al-Khalil under the protection of Israeli forces. Israeli soldiers also stormed at dawn today Iraq Burin town south of Nablus and summoned head and members of the village council for investigation over an alleged shooting attack on a nearby settlement.

Israeli forces erected a checkpoint at the entrance to the town since the early morning hours and started searching the passing-by vehicles. Similar searches were carried out at the entrance to Salem village east of the city, while tight military restrictions were imposed on Beit Furik town.

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