TAMMUN: Israeli forces have shot dead two Palestinians during an overnight raid in the occupied West Bank village of Tammun.
The military stated that special forces from the border police, army and Shin Bet security agency conducted a joint operation targeting what they described as a terrorist cell.
Israeli authorities accused the two men of planning imminent shooting and explosive attacks from the village while being affiliated with Islamic Jihad, a Hamas ally.
“Forces encircled the building in which the terrorists were hiding and eliminated the cell,“ the military said in its official statement.
The Palestinian health ministry confirmed receiving notification of the deaths and identified the men as 29-year-old Mohammed Suleiman and 20-year-old Alaa Joudat.
Israeli forces reportedly retained possession of both men’s bodies following the operation.
Tammun mayor Sameer Bisharat revealed that the two victims were relatives killed in a village greenhouse during the 1:00 am raid.
This rural northern West Bank district features numerous agricultural greenhouses common to the area.
Thursday’s incident follows a January drone strike in Tammun that killed two children and their 23-year-old relative, which the army similarly described as targeting a terrorist cell.
West Bank violence has intensified dramatically since Hamas’s October 2023 attack on Israel sparked the Gaza war.
Palestinian health ministry figures indicate at least 983 Palestinians have been killed by Israeli troops and settlers in the territory since that time.
Official statistics show at least 36 Israelis have died in Palestinian attacks or during military operations over the same period. – AFP
