Israel forces detain 65 Palestinian residents, raid homes in Jerusalem

Israeli Occupation forces carried out a widespread detention operation today in the Palestinian town of Anata, located north-east of Occupied Jerusalem, detaining 65 residents.

According to Wafa news agency, the forces raided numerous homes, leading to property damage and significant disruption for local families.

One of the homes, belonging to resident Muhammad Ghaith, was reportedly converted by the Israeli forces as a military outpost, where detainees were taken for interrogation.

Israel occupied East Jerusalem during the 1967 Arab-Israeli War. It annexed the entire city in 1980 in a move never recognised by the international community. The Palestinians insist on East Jerusalem as the capital of their future State, based on international legal resolutions.

Moreover, over the past few years, the Israeli military has conducted regular raids in the West Bank, which have escalated with the beginning of the war against the Palestinians in Gaza on 7 October, 2023. Palestinians have also been attacked by illegal Israeli settlers.

At least 760 Palestinians have been killed in the Occupied West Bank alone, since October last year, and over 6,250 others have been wounded by Israeli army fire, according to the Ministry of Health in Ramallah.

The escalation follows a landmark opinion in July by the International Court of Justice that declared Israel’s decades-long Occupation of Palestinian land is illegal and demanded the evacuation of all existing settlements in the West Bank and East Jerusalem, as well as the payment of reparations to the Palestinian people.

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