Israel raids W. Bank cities, detaining alleged militants

Israel began raids in the West Bank cities and villages Thursday, detaining several alleged Palestinian militants, Palestinian security sources said.

The sources said Israeli soldiers stormed the refugee camp of Aida in northern Bethlehem and detained the 45-year-old Khalil Abu Akar, director of a charity association in Bethlehem.

Abu Akar's son Murad, 18, was arrested earlier by the Israeli army which said he belongs to the Islamic Jihad.

In Al-Khader village in western Bethlehem, Israeli army raided several houses and intensified road control in the city.

Israeli forces also raided several villages in Hebron in southern West Bank, where the army arrested two Palestinians, claiming they are Hamas members.

Raids to a neighborhood in the southern part of Hebron were also reported by witnesses, who added that patrols in the city center were intensified.

Another alleged Jihad member was arrested in the village of Beit Lokya near Ramallah, the sources added.

The intensifying raids came after Israel is dismantling army bases in four settlements in the northern West Bank under the disengagement plan.

Earlier Thursday, an unarmed Palestinian young man was shot dead by Israeli soldiers in a military base near the West Bank city of Jenin. The army said the soldiers opened fire after their warning shots went unheeded.

Israel has completed the evacuation of some 8,500 settlers in all 21 settlements in the Gaza Strip, ending its 38 years of military occupation there.

Source: Xinhua