9 Palestinians injured by Israeli fire in West Bank raids

By Qais Abu Samra
RAMALLAH, Palestine (AA) – Nine Palestinians were injured Monday in fresh Israeli raids in the occupied West Bank, according to the Palestinian Red Crescent Society.
Medics treated six Palestinians from injuries in the towns of al-Yamun and Kafr Dan in Jenin in the northern West Bank, it said in a statement.
According to eyewitnesses, Israeli forces raided several homes in al-Yamun town, triggering clashes with local residents.
The Palestinian Health Ministry said two of the injured were in critical condition.
Three other Palestinians were shot and wounded in clashes with Israeli forces in the town of Qarawat Bani Zeid near Ramallah, the state news agency Wafa said.
The Israeli army has staged repeated arrest campaigns in Palestinian towns in recent days, triggering clashes with angry Palestinian residents.
The raids come as tension has flared up across the Palestinian territories since Israeli forces raided the Al-Aqsa Mosque courtyard in occupied East Jerusalem and amid daily settler incursions into the flashpoint site to celebrate the Jewish Passover holiday.
Al-Aqsa Mosque is the world's third-holiest site for Muslims. Jews call the area the "Temple Mount," claiming it was the site of two Jewish temples in ancient times.
Israel occupied East Jerusalem, where Al-Aqsa is located, during the 1967 Arab-Israeli war. It annexed the entire city in 1980, in a move never recognized by the international community.
Writing by Ahmed Asmar