RAMALLAH, Palestine

The Israeli army blew up the entrance to a mosque on Wednesday and imposed a curfew in the town of Tammun in the northern occupied West Bank.

Activist Ayman Gharib told Anadolu that “occupation forces detonated the entrance of Hudhayfah ibn al-Yaman Mosque” in Tammun in southern Tubas, as part of their attack on the town for the last four days.

Gharib added that the military imposed a curfew on residents since the morning, restricting the movement of only ambulances, with prior coordination with the Palestinian liaison office – the coordination body with Israel.

He also noted that “some women in labor have been waiting for hours for ambulances, but they have not been allowed to move.”

“The occupation soldiers are searching homes, house by house, and carrying out mass arrests before transferring the detainees to the Jiftlik area, east of the city,” said Gharib.​​​​​​​

On Jan. 21, the Israeli army launched a military offensive in the northern West Bank, starting in Jenin, its refugee camp, and surrounding towns, resulting in the deaths of 25 Palestinians, according to the Palestinian Ministry of Health.

On Jan. 27, the army expanded its offensive to the city of Tulkarem, where four Palestinians were killed. On Feb. 2, the army initiated a new operation in Tammun and the al-Far'a camp in the Tubas Governorate.

A statement from Palestinian Prime Minister Mohammad Mustafa’s office on Tuesday revealed that Israel had displaced 5,000 Palestinian families during its military operation in northern West Bank, now in its 16th consecutive day.

The escalation in the occupied territory followed a ceasefire and prisoner exchange deal in Gaza on Jan. 19, after more than 15 months of Israel’s genocidal war that has killed more than 47,500 Palestinians and devastated the enclave.

Since the war began Oct. 7, 2023, Israeli forces and settlers have killed at least 905 Palestinians across the occupied West Bank, according to the Palestinian Health Ministry.