The Israeli army has launched a prolonged raid on Ramallah and el-Bireh in the occupied West Bank, resulting in at least 58 Palestinians wounded, including a child hit by live fire.
The Palestinian Ministry of Health reported that the 13-year-old underwent surgery after being wounded in the abdomen.
Witnesses described the scene, saying Israeli forces stormed a currency exchange shop in an area between Ramallah, where the Palestinian Authority’s presidential compound al-Muqata’a is based, and el-Bireh, detaining at least three Palestinians.
Israeli snipers positioned themselves on rooftops, and soldiers stormed the central vegetable market area.
According to the Palestine Red Crescent Society (PRCS), eight people were hit with live bullets, 14 were struck with rubber-coated steel bullets – including a 71-year-old man – and five were wounded by shrapnel.
Another 31 Palestinians suffered tear gas inhalation, including two pregnant women. A rescue team was prevented from reaching the wounded in the besieged areas, the PRCS said.
The Palestinian Authority presidency condemned the raids, labelling them “criminal acts of aggression” and urging the United States to step in and halt ongoing “crimes” in the occupied West Bank.
Xavier Abu Eid, former communications director for the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO), described the raid as a show of force, stating, “this is part of the daily life of Palestinians… Israel is conducting a show of force to remind residents ‘who is actually ruling here’.”
Hamdah Salhut spoke on the ongoing Israeli army assault and settler violence in the occupied West Bank, saying, “Palestinians are rendered defenceless in the face of all of these threats: They’re forcibly displaced from their homes. They are constantly attacked by settler violence, and these settlers are emboldened by the Israeli government.” She added that there have been murders, arson, and olive trees uprooted, with the Israeli army protecting these settlers.
Adel Abdel Ghafar, senior fellow at the Middle East Council on Global Affairs, believes Israel’s latest military operation in Ramallah shows its war is not just with Hamas or Gaza but with “all the Palestinian people”.
He stated, “We’ve seen increasing incursions of the Israeli military into the West Bank. We’ve seen the demolition of homes. We’ve seen demolition of properties… This is all part and parcel of the collective punishment of the Palestinian people in the West Bank,” adding that part of the goal is to “financially strangle” people in the territory.
Israel’s actions are carried out “with impunity across the West Bank” due to the Palestinian Authority’s inability to respond effectively.
Paris-based political journalist Faten Elwan said the raid in Ramallah appeared to be more of a show of force over the West Bank rather than a targeted military operation.
“Israel is sending a clear message that Oslo [Accords] is dead, that the Palestinian Authority is dead and that there is no power on the ground but the Israeli forces and the settlers that now act as a shadow government for the vision of the Israeli army,” she said.
The Oslo Accords were supposed to bring about Palestinian self-determination in the form of a Palestinian state alongside Israel.
The West Bank has seen a surge in Israeli military and settler violence since Israel launched its war on Gaza in October 2023, with tens of thousands of Palestinians forced out of their homes.
According to the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, at least 671 Palestinians, including 129 children, have been killed by Israeli forces and settlers across the region since October 2023.
Ramallah recorded the highest number of attacks, 585, followed by 479 in Nablus in the northern West Bank.