IOF Blockades West Bank Village

Thursday 4 February 2016

IOF Blockades West Bank Village

The Israeli occupation army blockaded a village in the northern West Bank on Thursday that it said was home to Palestinians who carried out n operation against occupation soldiers.

Three men from Qabatiya, near Jenin, on Wednesday attacked police with guns and knives outside al-Quds Old City, killing a female officer and wounding another before being shot dead.

They were found to be in possession of explosive devices, occupation police said.

Following the attack, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu met with top security officials, who decided to bolster forces in the northern West Bank, carrying out arrests and imposing a blockade on Qabatiya, an official told AFP on condition of anonymity.

The attack was described in Israeli media as an "escalation" after more than four months of Palestinian knife, gun and car-ramming operations.

"There's no doubt that the intention of a terrorist cell with such an arsenal of weapons was to carry out a mass attack," occupation police commissioner Roni Alsheich said on Wednesday.

The occupied territories have been, since October 1, rocked by a wave of attacks against Zionists in retaliation of the Israeli repressive measures against the Palestinians across the West Bank and especially in al-Quds.

Zionist settlers backed by occupation forces have been repeatedly storming the holy al-Aqsa Mosque, sparking Palestinian anger.

The Palestinian operations since the start of October have killed 26 Israelis, while the Israeli occupation forces killed 164Palestinians.