Two Palestinians were killed when the car they were traveling in was hit by an Israeli airstrike in Jenin in the occupied West Bank on Saturday, the Palestinian Health Ministry said.

The Palestinian news agency WAFA reported that the car was hit by an “Israeli drone”.

Videos released on social networks show a burning vehicle in the middle of a road and a man shouting that “there are dead people in the car”. Other images show a crowd gathered around the wrecked car.

The Israeli Armed Forces (IDF) confirmed the strike in the Jenin area, but emphasized that the target was armed fighters.

Violence in the occupied West Bank has escalated since the start of Israeli military operations in the Gaza Strip, triggered by an unprecedented attack launched by Hamas on October 7 against Israel.

Since then, at least 635 Palestinians have been killed in the West Bank by either the Israeli army or Jewish settlers, according to an AFP tally based on Palestinian sources. In that time, at least 18 Israelis – soldiers and civilians – have been killed in Palestinian attacks in the same area, according to an Israeli tally.