Renewed Violence Erupts in Gaza and West Bank Amid Continued Ceasefire

Post by : Bianca Suleiman

On Tuesday, escalating violence in both Gaza and the occupied West Bank heightened worries about the tenuous ceasefire that has been in effect since early October.

In southern Gaza, journalist Mohamed Wadi was reported killed by an Israeli drone strike in Khan Younis, according to medical staff at Nasser Hospital who received his body. Wadi, noted for his drone-filming, joins the ranks of numerous Palestinian journalists who have lost their lives while covering this ongoing conflict.

Also on that day, a man was fatally shot near the eastern boundary of the Bureij refugee camp in central Gaza, as reported by Al-Awda Hospital.
The Gaza Health Ministry indicates that over 350 Palestinians have died across the territory since the ceasefire began on October 11, which halted the Israel-Hamas conflict. Israel offered no immediate comment on the fatalities but has claimed that such incidents often result from hostile fire.

Both sides—Israel and Hamas—continue to level accusations at one another regarding ceasefire violations, perpetuating high tensions throughout the crowded enclave.

In the occupied West Bank, tensions also escalated. Israeli forces shot and killed a suspect accused of stabbing two soldiers near the Ateret settlement in the vicinity of Ramallah. According to Israel’s Mada rescue service, the soldiers sustained only light injuries.
The fatality of an 18-year-old Palestinian was confirmed by the Palestinian Health Ministry in the same area, although it remains uncertain whether it involved the same incident.

Further south, close to Hebron, Israeli military personnel shot a 17-year-old Palestinian suspected of conducting a car-ramming incident that resulted in a soldier's injury. The military claimed the suspect attempted to evade arrest and posed a hazard to their troops.

Following the Hamas attack on October 7, which ignited the Gaza conflict last year, the Israeli army has ramped up operations across the West Bank. Palestinians argue that many of those targeted are unarmed civilians, protesters, or individuals with no ties to armed aggression.
Recent weeks have seen a rise in settler assaults on Palestinian communities, further exacerbating tensions.

Tensions flared again as Israeli forces demolished the residence of Abdul Karim Sanoubar in Nablus on Tuesday. Currently in detention, Sanoubar is accused of planting explosives on buses in central Israel earlier this year. This operation necessitated the evacuation of 13 nearby homes, with smoke billowing from the site as the structure collapsed.

Cross-border fire persisted in the north, with Israel conducting additional strikes on southern Lebanon, part of a continuous pattern of near-daily exchanges, accusing Hezbollah of breaching last year’s U.S.-brokered ceasefire.