One Israeli soldier killed, another severely wounded in West Bank raid

Traffic is blocked as Israeli army vehicles close off the entrance to the West Bank city of Qalqilya (AFP)
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Updated 27 June 2024
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One Israeli soldier killed, another severely wounded in West Bank raid

  • Palestinian prisoners’ association said Israeli forces arrested 28 people, nine of them from Jenin

JERUSALEM: One Israeli soldier was killed and one severely injured during a military raid in the Israeli occupied West Bank, the military said in a statement.
The soldier “fell during operational activity in the area of Jenin,” the statement said.
Palestinian media said that Israeli forces raided a pharmacy near Jenin Governmental Hospital, on the outskirts of Jenin refugee camp, and arrested people inside it, transferring them to an unknown destination.
A resident said Israeli bulldozers destroyed infrastructure inside the camp and in the city of Jenin.
The Palestinian prisoners’ association said Israeli forces arrested 28 people, nine of them from Jenin.
The Israeli military did not confirm the arrests or provide further details on the raid.
Violence in the West Bank, already on the rise before the Israel-Hamas war in Gaza, has escalated since then with frequent army raids on militant groups, rampages by Jewish settlers in Palestinian villages, and deadly Palestinian street attacks.


UN chief condemns Israeli law blocking electricity, water for UNRWA facilities

Updated 01 January 2026
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UN chief condemns Israeli law blocking electricity, water for UNRWA facilities

  • The agency provides education, health and aid to millions of Palestinians in Gaza, the West Bank, Jordan, Lebanon and Syria

United Nations Secretary General Antonio Guterres condemned on Wednesday a move by Israel to ban electricity or water to facilities owned by the UN Palestinian refugee agency, ​a UN spokesperson said.
The spokesperson said the move would “further impede” the agency’s ability to operate and carry out activities.
“The Convention on the Privileges and Immunities of the United Nations remains applicable to UNRWA (United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East), its property and assets, and to its officials and other personnel. Property used ‌by UNRWA ‌is inviolable,” Stephane Dujarric, spokesman for the ‌secretary-general, ⁠said ​while ‌adding that UNRWA is an “integral” part of the world body.
UNRWA Commissioner General Phillipe Lazzarini also condemned the move, saying that it was part of an ongoing “ systematic campaign to discredit  UNRWA and thereby obstruct” the role it plays in providing assistance to Palestinian refugees.
In 2024, the Israeli parliament passed a law banning the agency from operating in ⁠the country and prohibiting officials from having contact with the agency.
As a ‌result, UNRWA operates in East Jerusalem, ‍which the UN considers territory occupied ‍by Israel. Israel considers all Jerusalem to be part ‍of the country.
The agency provides education, health and aid to millions of Palestinians in Gaza, the West Bank, Jordan, Lebanon and Syria. It has long had tense relations with Israel but ties have deteriorated ​sharply since the start of the war in Gaza and Israel has called repeatedly for UNRWA to ⁠be disbanded, with its responsibilities transferred to other UN agencies.
The prohibition of basic utilities to the UN agency came as Israel also suspended of dozens of international non-governmental organizations working in Gaza due to a failure to meet new rules to vet those groups.
In a joint statement, Canada, Denmark, Finland, France, Iceland, Japan, Norway, Sweden, Switzerland and the United Kingdom said on Tuesday such a move would have a severe impact on the access of essential services, including health care. They said one in ‌three health care facilities in Gaza would close if international NGO operations stopped.