JENIN CITY, Palestine 

Israeli army forces raided the West Bank city of Jenin on Thursday amid clashes with Palestinian residents, according to witnesses.

Israeli forces searched several houses and shops in the city, witnesses said.

Armed clashes were reported between Israeli forces and Palestinians in al-Faraa refugee camp near Tubas city in the northern West Bank.

Tensions have been running high across the West Bank since Israel launched a deadly military offensive against the Gaza Strip after an attack by the Hamas group on Oct. 7, 2023.

Nearly 550 Palestinians have since been killed and nearly 5,200 others injured by Israeli army fire in the occupied territory, according to the Health Ministry.

Israel stands accused of “genocide” at the International Court of Justice, which in its latest ruling has ordered Tel Aviv to immediately halt its military operation in Rafah in the southern Gaza Strip, where over a million Palestinians had sought refuge from the war before it was invaded on May 6.

*Writing by Ahmed Asmar in Ankara