Three Palestinians killed, eight wounded in Israeli airstrikes in Jenin

Three Palestinians were killed and eight others were injured early this morning during the raid Israeli forces in Jenina stronghold of Palestinian militant groups in the occupied West Bank, the Palestinian news agency WAFA reported.

According to the same source, the three men were killed when Israeli forces, who have increased their operations in the field in recent months, opened fire on the car he was driving. A French news agency photojournalist saw the bodies of the three young men on the spot in a morgue and a white car that had been turned into a sieve by bullets, with the windows shattered.

For its part, the Israeli army said in a laconic message in Hebrew that it was conducting an operation in the Jenin area to locate weapons in two different locations. He added that his men came under fire reaching the first location and retaliatedthen spotted a suspicious car on the side of the road going to the second location.

The occupants of the car “opened fire” on the soldiers, who targeted them. “Thwarting terrorists’ plans”according to the Israeli army, according to which at the scene of the conflict two M-16 assault rifles and cartridges were found.

The Israeli army has stepped up attacks in and around Jenin refugee camp in recent weeks, a stronghold of Palestinian militant groups that have carried out recent attacks in Israel.

Al Jazeera’s well-known journalist Sirin Abu Akleh was shot dead last month in Jenin as part of an Israeli army operation.

The Palestinian Authority, Al Jazeera and the Qatari government (the international television network owned by the emirate) have accused the Israeli army of killing the reporter. Although it was initially claimed that Aklech – who wore a bulletproof vest with the word “press” and a helmet when she died – was “probably” killed by Palestinian gunfire, Israeli authorities did not rule out being shot by an Israeli soldier.