Israel targets a Palestinian resistance group

Islam News – Israeli occupation forces carried out a major raid against a new Palestinian resistance group in Nablus, a city in the occupied West Bank. Palestinian officials and resistance members said the raid yesterday killed a leader of the group and four other men.

Israel has blamed the group, known as the Lions’ Den, for a rise in shootings that it says are aimed at its troops and Jewish settlements; one shooting killed a soldier this month. The group, which emerged this year and does not answer to any of the established Palestinian factions, is steadily gaining support among young people.

Many Palestinians have championed the group’s fighters as popular heroes. These young Palestinians are as frustrated with the Palestinian Authority, which exercises limited authority over parts of the West Bank, as they are with Israel.

The predawn raid came ahead of Israel’s general election, its fifth since 2019, set for next Tuesday. It could add to right-wing momentum and strengthen Benjamin Netanyahu’s bid to retake power.

The Israeli occupation army has kept Nablus under a tight siege for about two weeks. Palestinians have decried the move as a collective punishment.

Background: This year has already been the deadliest in the West Bank since 2015 for Palestinians in the conflict with Israel, much of which has been focused on Nablus and Jenin. There has been a notable rise in violence against Palestinians by extremist Jewish settlers.

Source: The New York Times