Why West Bank tensions could boil over during Ramadan

RAMALLAH, West Bank — Since the start of the Muslim holy month of Ramadan this week, Israel has stepped up its military operations in the West Bank, killing several Palestinians in just a few days, including a 17-year-old in Bethlehem.

The Israeli army is throwing around its military weight in the West Bank, particularly in the north, as part of its efforts to eliminate the armed groups that emerged after the Sword of Jerusalem Battle. That armed conflict was launched by Hamas in the Gaza Strip in 2021 in response to tensions in the West Bank at the time. These armed groups are mainly concentrated in the West Bank refugee camps, where near-daily Israeli raids and incursions, punctuated by violent clashes, are taking place.

On Wednesday morning, a Palestinian teenager stabbed a female Israeli soldier and a security guard at the Tunnels Checkpoint south of Jerusalem. The attacker was killed, while the two Israelis sustained moderate injuries, according to Israeli police.

The incident came a few hours after Israeli forces shot dead three Palestinians in Jerusalem in two separate incidents involving violent clashes with the army and locals. Two other Palestinians were killed during an Israeli raid in Jenin on Tuesday night, according to the official Wafa news agency.