Israeli Army Eases Siege on Nablus

A picture taken early October 28, 2022 shows the Israeli checkpoint of Huwara, south of Nablus in the occupied West Bank. (AFP)
A picture taken early October 28, 2022 shows the Israeli checkpoint of Huwara, south of Nablus in the occupied West Bank. (AFP)
TT

Israeli Army Eases Siege on Nablus

A picture taken early October 28, 2022 shows the Israeli checkpoint of Huwara, south of Nablus in the occupied West Bank. (AFP)
A picture taken early October 28, 2022 shows the Israeli checkpoint of Huwara, south of Nablus in the occupied West Bank. (AFP)

The Israeli army on Friday announced a partial easing of the tight blockade it imposed on the northern West Bank city of Nablus.

The decision was not welcomed by settlers, who continued to hold rallies in various parts of the West Bank, protesting against what they called “the tolerance of Palestinian terrorism and the shedding of the blood of Jewish citizens.”

On Friday, the Israeli army removed two of the six checkpoints erected more than two weeks ago in the city’s vicinity.

The army justified its move by claiming that it had dealt a major blow to the Lions’ Den group.

At the same time, the military boasted that it killed “two terrorists” who turned out later to be members of the Civil Defense, which is part of the Palestinian Security Services.

Israeli circles justified the killing saying “it was done by mistake,” and that “the Israeli soldiers shot in self-defense, fearing that Palestinians had set up an ambush.”

The Palestinians deemed the killing a heinous crime.

The Israeli army had imposed a tighter siege on Nablus two and a half weeks ago, following an increase of operations and shootings.

Israel’s Yedioth Ahronoth newspaper reported on Friday that after assessing the security situation in the West Bank, the army decided to change and ease the restrictions imposed on Nablus, by opening two entrances to the city on Thursday night, keeping four other entrances under strict procedures, and monitoring vehicles that leave the city.

Later, reports said the easing of the siege was carried out in coordination with the Palestinian security services, which informed Israel that a number of activists from the “Lions’ den” in Nablus had surrendered.

Meanwhile, the Israeli right and settler leaders lashed out at the military’s decision to ease the siege on Nablus.

They organized several demonstrations in the West Bank against the army and its chief of staff Aviv Kohavi.

Head of Shomron Regional Council, Yossi Dagan, said the “Israeli army’s decision to remove the roadblocks on the way out of Nablus is a political decision by the Israeli government, in which it abandons the lives of settlers in the northern West Bank and throughout the country.”

Meanwhile, right-wing journalist Yoni Ben-Menachem, who is close to opposition leader Benjamin Netanyahu, said the decision to lift the siege on Nablus is a mistake, and that it only encourages the Palestinians to carry out more operations.



Ambulances Can’t Operate in Northern Gaza Strip, Health Ministry Says

A Palestinian man sits on the rubble of a house destroyed in the Israeli military offensive, amid the Israel-Hamas conflict, in Khan Younis in the southern Gaza Strip, November 4, 2024. (Reuters)
A Palestinian man sits on the rubble of a house destroyed in the Israeli military offensive, amid the Israel-Hamas conflict, in Khan Younis in the southern Gaza Strip, November 4, 2024. (Reuters)
TT

Ambulances Can’t Operate in Northern Gaza Strip, Health Ministry Says

A Palestinian man sits on the rubble of a house destroyed in the Israeli military offensive, amid the Israel-Hamas conflict, in Khan Younis in the southern Gaza Strip, November 4, 2024. (Reuters)
A Palestinian man sits on the rubble of a house destroyed in the Israeli military offensive, amid the Israel-Hamas conflict, in Khan Younis in the southern Gaza Strip, November 4, 2024. (Reuters)

The Gaza Health Ministry said ambulances are no longer operating in the north of the enclave, where Israel has been waging a renewed offensive for nearly a month.

Eyad Zaqout, a senior ministry official, told reporters Monday that “a large number of injured people are bleeding on the roads.”

The ministry also said in a statement that Israeli forces continue to bombard Kamal Adwan Hospital with strikes on Monday, injuring some staff and patients.

There was no immediate comment from the Israeli military.

The Civil Defense, first responders operating under the Hamas-run government, said last week that they were no longer able to operate in the north because crews had been fired upon by Israeli forces.

Israel launched its latest offensive in northern Gaza in early October, focusing on Jabalia, a densely populated, decades-old urban refugee camp where it says Hamas had regrouped. It has also carried out strikes in nearby Beit Lahia.

Israel has ordered the entire population in northern Gaza to evacuate, and tens of thousands have fled to Gaza City in recent weeks.

The three hospitals serving the northern areas are barely functioning and have been largely cut off by the fighting. Israeli forces raided one of them, saying fighters were sheltering there, allegations denied by Palestinian officials.

Israel has also sharply reduced the amount of aid allowed into Gaza, even after a warning from the United States that it could jeopardize American military support.