Israeli troops martyred 11 Palestinians in Nablus on Wednesday during a raid in the occupied West Bank city, and more than 80 others were injured by gunfire, according to the Palestinian health ministry.
The Israeli army said that the raid was aimed at people “hiding out in an apartment” who were suspected of shooting people in the West Bank. It said that troops were hit by live fire, but no one was hurt.
Hussein Al-Sheikh, a top Palestinian official, called the attack a “massacre” and asked for “international protection for our people.”
The number of people martyred is the same as in a raid by the Israeli army last month in Jenin, which is farther north. That raid was the deadliest in the West Bank since at least 2005.
The Israeli military said that one of the suspects was shot as he was running away, while the other two were shot when they got close to the property.
Israeli forces and the suspects “We traded fire, and at some point, we both got better. There were also rockets shot at the house “by the army, Richard Hecht, an army spokesman, told reporters.
A statement from the army said that rocks, explosives, and Molotov cocktails were thrown at the troops.
The Palestinian health ministry said that the people who died “because of the occupation’s attack on Nablus” ranged in age from 16 to 72.
Palestinian health officials said that 82 more people who had been shot were taken to hospitals.
Mostafa Shaheen, who lives in Nablus, was surprised to hear explosions at 9:30 a.m. (0730 GMT).
“”A lot of soldiers came into the area and surrounded it,” he told AFP. “We kept hearing shots and explosions.”
Misery
Huge crowds gathered outside the Rafidia hospital in Nablus to find out what was going on with the dozens of people who were being treated there.
AFP was told by a colleague of Mohammed Al-Khatib, a journalist for Palestine TV, that he was shot in the hand.
The Islamic Jihad group said that one of its leaders was killed “in a heroic battle against the Israeli occupation army and its special forces.”
The Lions’ Den, a local group of fighters, said that six of those killed were from different groups.
An AFP reporter said that after three hours, the troops left the city.
The Palestinian Red Crescent Society said that its doctors had helped 250 people who had breathed in tear gas and dozens of people who had been shot.
The Arab League called the raid “a terrible crime.”
“This horrible massacre is the fault of the occupation forces and the far-right Israeli government,” said Saeed Abu Ali, the assistant secretary-general of the Arab League for Palestinian affairs.
