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Israel Army Raids West Bank Town Tel Aviv Gunmen Hailed From

Israeli troops take position in the Nur Shams Palestinian refugee camp in the northern West Bank on April 10 JAAFAR ASHTIYEH AFP
Israeli troops take position in the Nur Shams Palestinian refugee camp in the northern West Bank on April 10 JAAFAR ASHTIYEH AFP
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Israel Army Raids West Bank Town Tel Aviv Gunmen Hailed From

Israeli troops take position in the Nur Shams Palestinian refugee camp in the northern West Bank on April 10 JAAFAR ASHTIYEH AFP
Israeli troops take position in the Nur Shams Palestinian refugee camp in the northern West Bank on April 10 JAAFAR ASHTIYEH AFP

Israeli soldiers on Sunday launched a new raid into the flashpoint West Bank district of Jenin, the home of gunmen who launched recent deadly attacks in the Tel Aviv area.

At least 10 people were wounded in clashes in Jenin as well as in Jericho and Tulkarem, the Palestinian health ministry said Sunday, while the Palestinian Prisoners Club announced 24 arrests in various West Bank cities.

"Troops are currently operating in the city of Jenin," in the north of the occupied West Bank, the Israeli army said in a brief message, AFP reported.

The military operation came after a gunman from Jenin went on a shooting rampage in a popular Tel Aviv nightlife area on Thursday evening, killing three Israelis and wounding more than a dozen others.

Israel said Friday it had killed the alleged attacker, Raad Hazem, 28.

A total of 14 people have been killed in four attacks in Israel since March 22, including another shooting spree in Bnei Brak, an Orthodox Jewish city near Tel Aviv.

Some have been carried out by assailants linked to or inspired by ISIS.

Over the same period, at least 10 Palestinians have been killed, including assailants.

"We will do whatever it takes, whatever is necessary, for however long and wherever needed, until both safety and the sense of security are restored," army chief Aviv Kochavi told soldiers in a video released by the military.

The Israeli army and border police had previously raided the Jenin refugee camp on Saturday, killing a 25-year-old Palestinian member of Islamic Jihad, the main Palestinian armed Islamist movement besides Hamas, in heavy gun battles.

Israel has also restricted access to Jenin, closed Israeli crossings and stepped up security checks.

The new operation comes ahead of the funerals of the three Israeli civilians killed in Tel Aviv on Thursday night -- childhood friends Tomer Morad and Eytam Magini, and father-of-three Barak Lufan -- which are expected later on Sunday in the town of Kfar Saba and at the kibbutz of Ginosar.

Hamas and Islamic Jihad welcomed that attack, which was condemned by Palestinian president Mahmoud Abbas.

The recent violence has come amid heightened tensions during Ramadan, after violence flared during the Muslim holy month last year leading to 11 days of devastating conflict between Israel and Palestinian militants in the Hamas-ruled Gaza Strip.

Following Thursday's attack, Israeli Prime Minister Naftali Bennett gave security agencies "full freedom" to end the deadly violence that has surged since March 22 "in order to defeat terror".

"There are not and will not be limits for this war," Bennett said.

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Arab World

UN Says It's Ready to Ramp Up Delivery of Desperately Needed Aid to Gaza

A Palestinian man rides a donkey-pulled cart along a street on a misty morning in Khan Yunis in the northern Gaza Strip on January 17, 2025, as Israel's security cabinet is expected to approve a Gaza ceasefire and hostage release deal. (Photo by Bashar TALEB / AFP)
A Palestinian man rides a donkey-pulled cart along a street on a misty morning in Khan Yunis in the northern Gaza Strip on January 17, 2025, as Israel's security cabinet is expected to approve a Gaza ceasefire and hostage release deal. (Photo by Bashar TALEB / AFP)
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UN Says It's Ready to Ramp Up Delivery of Desperately Needed Aid to Gaza

A Palestinian man rides a donkey-pulled cart along a street on a misty morning in Khan Yunis in the northern Gaza Strip on January 17, 2025, as Israel's security cabinet is expected to approve a Gaza ceasefire and hostage release deal. (Photo by Bashar TALEB / AFP)
A Palestinian man rides a donkey-pulled cart along a street on a misty morning in Khan Yunis in the northern Gaza Strip on January 17, 2025, as Israel's security cabinet is expected to approve a Gaza ceasefire and hostage release deal. (Photo by Bashar TALEB / AFP)

The United Nations said Wednesday that it’s ready to ramp up the delivery of desperately needed humanitarian aid to Gaza following a ceasefire agreement and urged the removal of major security and political obstacles so supplies can reach all Palestinians in need.
UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres called the announcement of a deal to pause the fighting “a critical first step” and told reporters that the UN’s top priority must be to ease the tremendous suffering caused by the conflict triggered by Hamas’ Oct. 7, 2023, attacks in southern Israel, The Associated Press said.
“The humanitarian situation is at catastrophic levels,” he said. “From our side, we will do whatever is humanly possible, aware of the serious challenges and serious constraints that we will be facing.”
UN humanitarian chief Tom Fletcher said aid agencies have been mobilizing supplies in preparation for a ceasefire to scale up deliveries of food, medical supplies and other key items.
Less than half of Gaza’s 36 hospitals are functional, water production is at a quarter of capacity, 95% of school buildings have been damaged or destroyed and nearly all of Gaza’s 2.1 million people are facing high levels of food insecurity, said Catherine Russell, executive director of the UN children’s agency UNICEF.
The top UN humanitarian official for Gaza, Sigrid Kaag, met with senior Israeli and Palestinian officials in recent days to discuss how to increase aid after a ceasefire agreement, UN spokesman Stephane Dujarric said Tuesday.
Kaag’s meetings focused on trying to overcome challenges to deliveries that could remain even after the deal, including gunmen stripping convoys of aid, Israeli restrictions on access to Gaza, road damage, unexplored ordnance, fuel shortages and a lack of telecommunications equipment, he said.
The UN humanitarian office reported Tuesday that “Israeli authorities continue to deny UN-led efforts to reach people with vital assistance,” Dujarric said. In northern Gaza, where Israel launched its latest offensive, the UN has been denied access to deliver food supplies since Dec. 20, he said.
In addition to the lawlessness, the United Nations faces a major political obstacle. Its humanitarian operation in Gaza depends on the UN agency for Palestinian refugees, known as UNRWA, which Israel’s parliament voted to ban from operating in the Palestinian territories. That legislation takes effect on Jan. 28.
Guterres has said there is no UN agency that can replace UNRWA, and if it is banned from operating, Israel as the occupying power in the Palestinian territories must take responsibility for providing aid.
UN officials said it’s imperative that the ceasefire deal is fully implemented and aid is allowed to flow freely.
“With the collapse of essential services across Gaza, we must act urgently to save lives and help children recover,” Russell of UNICEF said in a statement.
Guterres said the United Nations expects its efforts to be matched by other humanitarian organizations, the private sector and government initiatives.
David Miliband, head of the International Rescue Committee, said aid groups must be given full access and adequate funding to rush aid to Gaza’s people after 15 months with limited food, clean water and medical care. He said his organization would quickly ramp up efforts: “The needs are immense and need urgent attention.”
Jan Egeland, a former UN humanitarian chief who heads the Norwegian Refugee Council, said, “Israel must immediately lift all restrictions on aid and humanitarian agencies to avert famine-like conditions and ensure access to shelter, food, and medical care for all in need.”
He called on the United States, Germany, the United Kingdom and other nations “to make sure Israel does keep all crossings open, enabling a sustained flow of aid that can alleviate further suffering.”
US President Joe Biden, speaking in Washington, said, “The surge of humanitarian assistance into Gaza will begin. And the innocent people can have a greater access to these vital supplies.