Israeli army detains 21 Palestinians in West Bank raids

By Awad Rajoub

RAMALLAH, Palestine (AA) – Israeli forces rounded up 21 Palestinians in military raids in the occupied West Bank on Tuesday, according to Palestinian media.

The arrests took place in the cities of Bethlehem, Hebron, Jericho, Ramallah, Tubas, Jenin and Qalqilya, the state news agency Wafa reported.

The Israeli army frequently carries out wide-ranging arrest campaigns across the occupied West Bank and East Jerusalem on the pretext of searching for “wanted” Palestinians.

Meanwhile, Israeli forces demolished a barracks and an agriculture structure northwest of Jerusalem, according to a local anti-settlement committee.

UN estimates show that the Israeli army demolished 779 Palestinian buildings since the start of 2022, 646 of them in Area C of the West Bank and 133 in East Jerusalem.

Area C is under Israel’s administrative and security control until a final status agreement is reached with the Palestinians.

Under the 1995 Oslo Accords between Israel and the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO), the West Bank, including East Jerusalem, was divided into three portions – Area A, B, and C.

*Ikram Imane Kouachi in Ankara contributed to this report