The Israeli army arrests a number of Palestinians, including leaders of the "Fatah" movement.

The Israeli army arrested a number of Palestinians in the occupied West Bank on Thursday, including leaders of the "Fatah" movement led by Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas.

Local sources reported that the Israeli army carried out a series of raids early Thursday targeting several cities and towns in the occupied West Bank, concentrated in the governorates of Salfit and Nablus (north), and Bethlehem and Hebron (south).

The "Fatah" movement stated in a statement that "the occupation forces arrested the Secretary of the Fatah movement in the Salfit region, Abdul Sattar Awad, the youth leader Muammar Ziqan, the director of the Fatah movement's office in the region, Adel Al-Khafsh, and the youth coordinator in Salfit governorate, Issam Harb."

The Israeli army also arrested at least 5 Palestinians during the raid in Nablus, 6 from Hebron, and another from Bethlehem, according to local sources.

Alongside the genocide in Gaza, the Israeli army and settlers have escalated their attacks in the West Bank, including East Jerusalem, resulting in the deaths of at least 1,017 Palestinians and injuries to about 7,000 others, in addition to the arrest of more than 18,500.

With American support, Israel has been committing genocide in Gaza since October 7, 2023, resulting in 63,746 deaths and 161,245 injuries among Palestinians, most of whom are children and women, over 9,000 missing, hundreds of thousands displaced, and famine that has killed 367 Palestinians, including 131 children.

For decades, Israel has occupied Palestine and lands in Syria and Lebanon, refusing to withdraw and establish an independent Palestinian state with East Jerusalem as its capital, based on the borders prior to the 1967 war.