Israel army kills Palestinian identified as Hamas fighter in West Bank

RAMALLAH: Israel’s security forces said they killed a Palestinian, identified by Hamas as one of its fighters, in a raid in the occupied West Bank city of Qalqilya before dawn on Tuesday.
The Ramallah-based Palestinian ministry of health said a young man it identified as 19-year-old Baraa Yusuf was killed by Israeli forces in the early morning in Qalqilya.
In a joint statement, Israel’s police, military and internal intelligence agency said Israeli forces killed a Palestinian “who was planning an imminent attack” in a raid carried out “during the night.”
They said the target of the raid “intended to carry out an attack against Israeli civilians in the immediate future” and began firing at police officers, who returned fire, killing him.
The statement said two other individuals “were neutralized” during the exchange of fire, in which Israeli forces used “shoulder-launched missiles, an explosive drone, and live ammunition.”
The official Palestinian news agency Wafa cited Palestinian security sources as saying that the Israeli army opened fire on Yusuf while he was inside a shop, wounding two other Palestinians after he refused to surrender.
Hamas said on Telegram that Yusuf, known as “Miskawi,” was a member of its armed wing, the Al-Qassam Brigades.
He had been released in November 2023 as part of a hostage-prisoner exchange deal between Hamas and Israel during an early truce in the war in Gaza.
Violence has soared throughout the West Bank since the war in Gaza broke out.
Israeli troops or settlers have killed at least 913 Palestinians, including many militants, in the West Bank since the start of the war, according to the Palestinian health ministry.
At least 32 Israelis, including soldiers, have been killed in Palestinian attacks or Israeli military operations, according to official Israeli figures.