Israeli Forces Detain Palestinian Journalist Amid West Bank Raids
TEHRAN (Tasnim) - Israeli forces detained journalist Rasha Hirzallah from Wafa news agency after summoning her to a detention center in Ariel, an illegal Israeli settlement in the occupied West Bank, as reported by Wafa on Sunday night.
Hirzallah, accompanied by a lawyer, responded to the summons by Israeli intelligence, who informed her of a 72-hour detention without specifying the reasons or charges, Wafa disclosed.
In a related incident, Israeli forces raided Nablus city in the occupied West Bank, escorting numerous Israeli settlers to the shrine recognized as Joseph’s Tomb.
Israeli snipers were observed positioned atop buildings near the shrine while an Israeli military bulldozer created a barrier by digging up a nearby road, Wafa stated.
The incursion follows a previous breach where numerous Israelis stormed the Al-Aqsa Mosque compound, one of Muslims’ holiest sites.
Additionally, Israeli forces conducted raids in the villages of Hajjah, Jayyous, and Azzun in the Qalqilya governorate, along with the city of Tubas and the town of Tammun near Jenin city in the occupied West Bank.
Wafa news agency reported that the recent arrests encompassed 20 Palestinians detained in raids since the prior night, with at least 12 individuals apprehended from various towns in the Hebron governorate.
According to the Palestinian Prisoner’s Society, Israeli forces have detained over 9,000 Palestinians in the occupied West Bank since the onset of the Gaza war, characterizing the surge as an “unprecedented pace” of arrests.