<div style="text-align: justify; "><b style="font-size: 1rem;">Israeli forces in the West Bank killed 10 Palestinians on Thursday, officials in the occupied territory said, nine of them in a raid the Israeli military described as a counterterrorism operation.</b><br></div><div style="text-align: justify; "><br></div><div style="text-align: justify; ">The bloodiest day in the West Bank in years erupted during a raid on the crowded refugee camp in the northern city of Jenin, where gunshots rang through the streets and smoke billowed from burning barricades.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Palestinian health officials put the death toll from the clashes at nine, adding that 20 people were wounded before Israeli forces withdrew mid-morning.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;">The military said Israeli forces came under fire during a "counterterrorism operation to apprehend an Islamic Jihad terror squad" and shot several enemy combatants.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Since its records began in 2005, the United Nations has never logged such a high death toll in a single operation in the West Bank.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;">A tenth Palestinian was subsequently shot dead by Israeli forces in Al-Ram, near Ramallah, the Palestinian health ministry said.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Official Palestinian news agency Wafa said the man was shot in clashes that erupted during a protest over the Jenin killings.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;">The violence prompted the Palestinian Authority to announce it was cutting security coordination with Israel, a move criticised by the United States.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Among those confirmed dead in Jenin was Majeda Obeid, 61, who lived some metres from the house targeted by the Israeli forces.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Her daughter, Kefiyat Obeid, told AFP her mother was shot as she peered out her window at the clashes.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;">"After she finished her prayers, she stopped for a moment to look and, as she stood up, she was hit in the neck by a bullet and she fell against the wall and then to the floor," the 26-year-old told AFP, as bloodstains soaked into the rug of their home.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;">- 'State of panic' -</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;">The military said the incursion targeted Islamic Jihad militants who were allegedly behind attacks on Israeli soldiers and civilians and, according to Israeli Defence Minister Yoav Gallant, were planning "to conduct a terror attack in Israel".</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Three Palestinians were shot in a firefight, while Israeli forces shot a further two "fleeing the scene", an army statement said. Israeli forces also shot a sixth suspect inside a building, and other Palestinians were hit after firing on troops, the army said.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;">"Claims regarding additional casualties during the exchange of fire are being looked into," it added.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;">There were no casualties among the Israeli forces, the military said.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Wisam Bakr, director of the Jenin Government Hospital, said there was a "state of panic" in the paediatric ward, with some children suffering from tear gas inhalation.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;">The Israeli military told AFP "the activity was not far away from the hospital, and it is possible some tear gas entered through an open window".</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Jenin resident Umm Youssef Al-Sawalmi said homes were hit during the raid. "Windows, doors, walls and even the refrigerator, everything was damaged by the bullets," she told AFP.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Islamic Jihad spokesman Tariq Salmi vowed that "the resistance is everywhere and ready and willing for the next confrontation".</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;">The latest deaths bring the number of Palestinians killed in the West Bank so far this year to 30, including fighters and civilians, most of whom were shot by Israeli forces.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Saleh al-Arouri, deputy leader of Palestinian militant group Hamas, which rules Gaza, vowed that Israel "will pay the price for the Jenin massacre".</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;">- 'Bloody massacre' -</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Shortly after midnight (2200 GMT), two rockets were fired from the Gaza Strip towards Israeli territory, according to witnesses and local security sources.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;">They were intercepted by Israel's air defence system, an army spokesman said.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Washington earlier Thursday announced US Secretary of State Antony Blinken would travel next week to Israel and the Palestinian territories, where he will push for an "end to the cycle of violence".</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;">US regional allies Jordan, Qatar and Saudi Arabia all strongly condemned the deadly Israeli incursion.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;">The mounting toll follows the deadliest year in the Palestinian territory recorded by the UN.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;">At least 26 Israelis and 200 Palestinians were killed across Israel and the Palestinian territories in 2022, the majority in the West Bank, according to an AFP tally from official sources.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;">UN peace envoy Tor Wennesland said he was "deeply alarmed and saddened by the continuing cycle of violence in the occupied West Bank".</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Thousands flocked to funerals in Jenin, as the Palestinian presidency announced three days of mourning. It charged that Thursday's raid was happening "under international silence".</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;">"This is what encourages the occupation government to commit massacres against our people in full view of the world," said Nabil Abu Rudeinah, spokesman for Palestinian president Mahmud Abbas. AFP</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify; ">bnbd24/kh</div>