RAMALLAH, Palestine

The Israeli army breaking into a Palestinian medical clinic in the occupied West Bank and destroying its contents was "a brutal act," the West Bank-based Palestinian health minister said on Wednesday.

In a statement, Mai Alkaila said the Israeli army raided the medical clinic in the village of Al-Rashaida, east of Bethlehem, in the northern West Bank, destroying its contents and smashing patient records in the clinic.

The clinic serves more than 3,000 people, she noted, and provides its services to rural areas and to people living in areas isolated by the Israeli segregation wall in the West Bank.

Alkaila added that her ministry sent letters to the World Health Organization and the International Committee of the Red Cross protesting the Israeli assault.

The Israeli army has yet to comment on the incident.

Tensions have been high across the West Bank since fighting broke out in Gaza on Oct. 7 between Palestinian groups and Israel.

Some 341 Palestinians have been killed by Israeli forces in the West Bank since Oct. 7, with over 3,400 others injured, according to official Palestinian Health Ministry figures.

*Writing by Ahmed Asmar​​​​​​​