Israeli settlers attack West Bank town after Gaza bomb

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4 hours ago

Dozens of Israeli settlers have attacked a Palestinian West Bank town, sparking a confrontation that ended with Israeli forces killing three Palestinians.
Both Palestinian and Israeli authorities have confirmed that three Palestinians were killed and seven wounded in the violence in Kafr Malik, northeast of Ramallah.
An Israeli military statement said dozens of Israelis set fire to property, and military and police forces were dispatched after receiving a report of ensuing violence that included an exchange of stone-throwing.
The military statement said several Palestinians opened fire and hurled rocks at the forces, who returned the fire. Five Israeli suspects were arrested. An Israeli army officer was lightly wounded.
The violence followed an attack in the south of the Gaza strip which killed seven Israeli soldiers, in the military's deadliest day in the territory since it broke a ceasefire with Hamas in March.
The soldiers were killed when a explosive device planted on the armoured vehicle they were travelling in ignited a fire, the military said.
The latest deaths are likely to increase public pressure on Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to reach a permanent ceasefire in the enclave and end the nearly two-year-long war, a move strongly opposed by hardline members of his ruling coalition.
Public support for Netanyahu collapsed after the October 7, 2023, Hamas attack on southern Israel.
But his standing has been boosted by his surprise decision to strike Iran - a campaign widely viewed as dealing a significant blow to Israel's longtime adversary.
Attention has shifted back to the Gaza Strip following US President Donald Trump's announcement of a truce between Israel and Iran that came into effect on Tuesday and continues to hold.
Moshe Gafne, an MP from an ultra-Orthodox party within Netanyahu's coalition government, on Wednesday publicly questioned why Israel was still locked in the war in the Gaza Strip.
"This is a very sad day, with seven soldiers killed in Gaza ... I still don't understand why we are fighting there. To what end?" he told a parliamentary committee.
Hamas' military wing confirmed that it had carried out the deadly attack in Khan Younis on Tuesday.
The war in the Gaza Strip has isolated Israel from many of its international partners critical of the military campaign.
During the 12 days Israel was fighting Iran, more than 800 Palestinians were killed in the Gaza Strip by the Israeli military, according to local health officials.
There are mounting domestic and international calls for a permanent ceasefire and to secure the release of the remaining hostages, as coalition members Itamar Ben-Gvir and Bezalel Smotrich have pressed to keep fighting.
Netanyahu's coalition of secular and religious parties holds a narrow parliamentary majority, meaning the prime minister can ill afford dissent.
The Hostages and Missing Families Forum, which represents the relatives of some captives, this week called on the United States to push for a comprehensive deal that would secure the release of the hostages.
Twenty hostages remain in captivity in the strip while Hamas is also holding the bodies of 30 who have died.
Netanyahu has demanded that Hamas, which has ruled the Gaza Strip for nearly two decades, release the hostages, relinquish any future role in the enclave and lay down its weapons in order to end the war.
Hamas has said it would release the hostages if Israel agrees to a permanent ceasefire and withdraws from the strip.
It has refused to discuss disarmament.
The war was triggered when Hamas-led militants attacked Israel on October 7, 2023, killing close to 1200 people and taking 251 hostages, according to Israeli tallies.
Israel's retaliatory war in the Gaza Strip has so far killed 56,000 Palestinians, according to local health authorities, most of them civilians, and destroyed much of the coastal strip.
with AP
Dozens of Israeli settlers have attacked a Palestinian West Bank town, sparking a confrontation that ended with Israeli forces killing three Palestinians.
Both Palestinian and Israeli authorities have confirmed that three Palestinians were killed and seven wounded in the violence in Kafr Malik, northeast of Ramallah.
An Israeli military statement said dozens of Israelis set fire to property, and military and police forces were dispatched after receiving a report of ensuing violence that included an exchange of stone-throwing.
The military statement said several Palestinians opened fire and hurled rocks at the forces, who returned the fire. Five Israeli suspects were arrested. An Israeli army officer was lightly wounded.
The violence followed an attack in the south of the Gaza strip which killed seven Israeli soldiers, in the military's deadliest day in the territory since it broke a ceasefire with Hamas in March.
The soldiers were killed when a explosive device planted on the armoured vehicle they were travelling in ignited a fire, the military said.
The latest deaths are likely to increase public pressure on Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to reach a permanent ceasefire in the enclave and end the nearly two-year-long war, a move strongly opposed by hardline members of his ruling coalition.
Public support for Netanyahu collapsed after the October 7, 2023, Hamas attack on southern Israel.
But his standing has been boosted by his surprise decision to strike Iran - a campaign widely viewed as dealing a significant blow to Israel's longtime adversary.
Attention has shifted back to the Gaza Strip following US President Donald Trump's announcement of a truce between Israel and Iran that came into effect on Tuesday and continues to hold.
Moshe Gafne, an MP from an ultra-Orthodox party within Netanyahu's coalition government, on Wednesday publicly questioned why Israel was still locked in the war in the Gaza Strip.
"This is a very sad day, with seven soldiers killed in Gaza ... I still don't understand why we are fighting there. To what end?" he told a parliamentary committee.
Hamas' military wing confirmed that it had carried out the deadly attack in Khan Younis on Tuesday.
The war in the Gaza Strip has isolated Israel from many of its international partners critical of the military campaign.
During the 12 days Israel was fighting Iran, more than 800 Palestinians were killed in the Gaza Strip by the Israeli military, according to local health officials.
There are mounting domestic and international calls for a permanent ceasefire and to secure the release of the remaining hostages, as coalition members Itamar Ben-Gvir and Bezalel Smotrich have pressed to keep fighting.
Netanyahu's coalition of secular and religious parties holds a narrow parliamentary majority, meaning the prime minister can ill afford dissent.
The Hostages and Missing Families Forum, which represents the relatives of some captives, this week called on the United States to push for a comprehensive deal that would secure the release of the hostages.
Twenty hostages remain in captivity in the strip while Hamas is also holding the bodies of 30 who have died.
Netanyahu has demanded that Hamas, which has ruled the Gaza Strip for nearly two decades, release the hostages, relinquish any future role in the enclave and lay down its weapons in order to end the war.
Hamas has said it would release the hostages if Israel agrees to a permanent ceasefire and withdraws from the strip.
It has refused to discuss disarmament.
The war was triggered when Hamas-led militants attacked Israel on October 7, 2023, killing close to 1200 people and taking 251 hostages, according to Israeli tallies.
Israel's retaliatory war in the Gaza Strip has so far killed 56,000 Palestinians, according to local health authorities, most of them civilians, and destroyed much of the coastal strip.
with AP
Dozens of Israeli settlers have attacked a Palestinian West Bank town, sparking a confrontation that ended with Israeli forces killing three Palestinians.
Both Palestinian and Israeli authorities have confirmed that three Palestinians were killed and seven wounded in the violence in Kafr Malik, northeast of Ramallah.
An Israeli military statement said dozens of Israelis set fire to property, and military and police forces were dispatched after receiving a report of ensuing violence that included an exchange of stone-throwing.
The military statement said several Palestinians opened fire and hurled rocks at the forces, who returned the fire. Five Israeli suspects were arrested. An Israeli army officer was lightly wounded.
The violence followed an attack in the south of the Gaza strip which killed seven Israeli soldiers, in the military's deadliest day in the territory since it broke a ceasefire with Hamas in March.
The soldiers were killed when a explosive device planted on the armoured vehicle they were travelling in ignited a fire, the military said.
The latest deaths are likely to increase public pressure on Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to reach a permanent ceasefire in the enclave and end the nearly two-year-long war, a move strongly opposed by hardline members of his ruling coalition.
Public support for Netanyahu collapsed after the October 7, 2023, Hamas attack on southern Israel.
But his standing has been boosted by his surprise decision to strike Iran - a campaign widely viewed as dealing a significant blow to Israel's longtime adversary.
Attention has shifted back to the Gaza Strip following US President Donald Trump's announcement of a truce between Israel and Iran that came into effect on Tuesday and continues to hold.
Moshe Gafne, an MP from an ultra-Orthodox party within Netanyahu's coalition government, on Wednesday publicly questioned why Israel was still locked in the war in the Gaza Strip.
"This is a very sad day, with seven soldiers killed in Gaza ... I still don't understand why we are fighting there. To what end?" he told a parliamentary committee.
Hamas' military wing confirmed that it had carried out the deadly attack in Khan Younis on Tuesday.
The war in the Gaza Strip has isolated Israel from many of its international partners critical of the military campaign.
During the 12 days Israel was fighting Iran, more than 800 Palestinians were killed in the Gaza Strip by the Israeli military, according to local health officials.
There are mounting domestic and international calls for a permanent ceasefire and to secure the release of the remaining hostages, as coalition members Itamar Ben-Gvir and Bezalel Smotrich have pressed to keep fighting.
Netanyahu's coalition of secular and religious parties holds a narrow parliamentary majority, meaning the prime minister can ill afford dissent.
The Hostages and Missing Families Forum, which represents the relatives of some captives, this week called on the United States to push for a comprehensive deal that would secure the release of the hostages.
Twenty hostages remain in captivity in the strip while Hamas is also holding the bodies of 30 who have died.
Netanyahu has demanded that Hamas, which has ruled the Gaza Strip for nearly two decades, release the hostages, relinquish any future role in the enclave and lay down its weapons in order to end the war.
Hamas has said it would release the hostages if Israel agrees to a permanent ceasefire and withdraws from the strip.
It has refused to discuss disarmament.
The war was triggered when Hamas-led militants attacked Israel on October 7, 2023, killing close to 1200 people and taking 251 hostages, according to Israeli tallies.
Israel's retaliatory war in the Gaza Strip has so far killed 56,000 Palestinians, according to local health authorities, most of them civilians, and destroyed much of the coastal strip.
with AP
Dozens of Israeli settlers have attacked a Palestinian West Bank town, sparking a confrontation that ended with Israeli forces killing three Palestinians.
Both Palestinian and Israeli authorities have confirmed that three Palestinians were killed and seven wounded in the violence in Kafr Malik, northeast of Ramallah.
An Israeli military statement said dozens of Israelis set fire to property, and military and police forces were dispatched after receiving a report of ensuing violence that included an exchange of stone-throwing.
The military statement said several Palestinians opened fire and hurled rocks at the forces, who returned the fire. Five Israeli suspects were arrested. An Israeli army officer was lightly wounded.
The violence followed an attack in the south of the Gaza strip which killed seven Israeli soldiers, in the military's deadliest day in the territory since it broke a ceasefire with Hamas in March.
The soldiers were killed when a explosive device planted on the armoured vehicle they were travelling in ignited a fire, the military said.
The latest deaths are likely to increase public pressure on Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to reach a permanent ceasefire in the enclave and end the nearly two-year-long war, a move strongly opposed by hardline members of his ruling coalition.
Public support for Netanyahu collapsed after the October 7, 2023, Hamas attack on southern Israel.
But his standing has been boosted by his surprise decision to strike Iran - a campaign widely viewed as dealing a significant blow to Israel's longtime adversary.
Attention has shifted back to the Gaza Strip following US President Donald Trump's announcement of a truce between Israel and Iran that came into effect on Tuesday and continues to hold.
Moshe Gafne, an MP from an ultra-Orthodox party within Netanyahu's coalition government, on Wednesday publicly questioned why Israel was still locked in the war in the Gaza Strip.
"This is a very sad day, with seven soldiers killed in Gaza ... I still don't understand why we are fighting there. To what end?" he told a parliamentary committee.
Hamas' military wing confirmed that it had carried out the deadly attack in Khan Younis on Tuesday.
The war in the Gaza Strip has isolated Israel from many of its international partners critical of the military campaign.
During the 12 days Israel was fighting Iran, more than 800 Palestinians were killed in the Gaza Strip by the Israeli military, according to local health officials.
There are mounting domestic and international calls for a permanent ceasefire and to secure the release of the remaining hostages, as coalition members Itamar Ben-Gvir and Bezalel Smotrich have pressed to keep fighting.
Netanyahu's coalition of secular and religious parties holds a narrow parliamentary majority, meaning the prime minister can ill afford dissent.
The Hostages and Missing Families Forum, which represents the relatives of some captives, this week called on the United States to push for a comprehensive deal that would secure the release of the hostages.
Twenty hostages remain in captivity in the strip while Hamas is also holding the bodies of 30 who have died.
Netanyahu has demanded that Hamas, which has ruled the Gaza Strip for nearly two decades, release the hostages, relinquish any future role in the enclave and lay down its weapons in order to end the war.
Hamas has said it would release the hostages if Israel agrees to a permanent ceasefire and withdraws from the strip.
It has refused to discuss disarmament.
The war was triggered when Hamas-led militants attacked Israel on October 7, 2023, killing close to 1200 people and taking 251 hostages, according to Israeli tallies.
Israel's retaliatory war in the Gaza Strip has so far killed 56,000 Palestinians, according to local health authorities, most of them civilians, and destroyed much of the coastal strip.
with AP