Palestinians say Israel troops kill three in West Bank

The Palestinian health ministry said Israeli forces killed three Palestinians Thursday in a raid in Jenin city in the occupied West Bank, while the army said troops had "eliminated militants".

The Palestinian Red Crescent said another 13 people had been wounded in the raid.

Israel's army said it had conducted "counterterrorism activity" around Jenin.

Its forces "eliminated" militants and arrested "a wanted individual suspected of terrorist activities", it said in a statement.

The Al-Quds Brigades, the armed wing of Palestinian militant group Islamic Jihad, said in a statement that its fighters were engaged in "violent clashes" near the Jenin refugee camp.

An AFP correspondent also reported clashes outside the camp.

Jenin has long been a stronghold for Palestinian militant groups, and the Israeli army routinely carries out raids in the city and adjacent camp.

The West Bank, which Israel has occupied since 1967, has experienced a surge in violence for more than a year, but especially since the Israel-Hamas war erupted on October 7.

At least 530 Palestinians have been killed in the territory by Israeli troops or settlers since the Gaza war broke out, according to Palestinian officials.

Attacks by Palestinians have killed at least 14 Israelis in the West Bank over the same period, according to an AFP tally of Israeli official figures.

The Gaza Strip has been gripped by nearly eight months of war since Hamas's unprecedented October 7 attack on Israel, which resulted in the deaths of 1,194 people, mostly civilians, according to an AFP tally based on Israeli official figures.

Militants also took 251 hostages, 120 of whom remain in Gaza, including 41 the army says are dead.

Israel's military offensive on Gaza has since killed at least 36,654 people, also mostly civilians, according to the Hamas-run territory's health ministry.

bur-mca/jd/srm