Israeli forces launched a large-scale raid on the city of Nablus, including the Old City, in the occupied West Bank on Tuesday. At least two Palestinians were killed, with many more injured by tear gas, gunshot wounds, and physical assaults. Locals expect Tel Aviv’s attack on Nablus to continue for an extended period, similar to prolonged Israeli assaults, ongoing since January, in other West Bank cities like Jenin and Tulkarm.

According to Middle East Eye, the raid began just after midnight with a huge number of military vehicles encircling the city and “entering from multiple directions.” Israeli officers imposed a curfew, with residents ordered to stay indoors until Wednesday morning. This is the first time such an order has been imposed in Nablus since the Second Intifada. The Israeli occupation army said its operations would last for 24 hours and focus on the Old City. Following raids on their homes, there were reports that Palestinian families were prevented from contacting their neighbors.

Soldiers reportedly rounded up dozens of young Palestinian men during the raids on homes, where residents’ property was also seized or stolen. Although the Israeli army said that more than 250 buildings were searched, it acknowledged only six arrests in a statement shared on X.

The IDF also opened fire on Palestinians, including a paramedic, and shot tear gas bombs at homes in the densely populated alleys of the Old City, MEE reported. The Israeli army claimed that two Palestinian brothers – Nidal and Khaled Omaira – were killed after they attempted to take a soldier’s firearm during a search operation, stating that multiple IDF troops were wounded in the tussle.

“As a result of the attempted weapon seizure, several bullets were fired, causing moderate injuries to one IDF soldier and minor injuries to three IDF soldiers. The force responded by firing at the terrorists and killing both of them,” the military said.

However, the MEE report went on to note that “Mujahed Tabanja, a journalist at the scene, [said] the two men were shot while trying to return to their homes in the Old City. Ambulances were blocked from reaching them.”

Per the New Arab, the Palestinian Red Crescent Society (PRCS) said at least 82 people had been wounded in the Nablus operations so far. The relief agency previously noted at least 22 cases of non-fatal suffocation from tear gas deployed by Israeli troops, as well as five Palestinians who were beaten by occupation forces. The MEE report cited a PRCS operations officer, Fawaz al-Bitar, who said a minimum of 65 people were injured, including some whose thighs were maimed by Israeli gunfire.

Bitar told the outlet an ambulance was fired upon and that medics were prevented from reaching the two dying brothers, as well as other victims.

The Libertarian Institute reached out to the PRCS for additional details on the raid and will update this story if a response is received.

The IDF attack is expected to be a long-term operation, with fuel tanks brought in for the military vehicles, while troops have been rotated in and out of the city, indicating the assault will continue for more than 24 hours.

Since the heavily pro-Israel Donald Trump administration took power, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has launched a massive attack on the northern West Bank, dubbed ‘Operation Iron Wall.’ Dozens of Palestinians have been murdered throughout the operation, including a two-year-old girl named Laila al-Khateeb, who was shot in the head inside her family’s home during an attack on Jenin.

Israel’s expansive West Bank operations this year have seen Merkava tanks, quadcopter drones, armored vehicles, airstrikes, and snipers join in on terrorizing the Palestinian cities. Demolitions of homes and other residential structures have skyrocketed. The operation “involves more than 12 military battalions, the Israeli Shin Bet (intelligence), and border police in one of the largest and most expansive military operations to take place in the West Bank since Operation Defensive Shield in 2002,” according to The New Arab.

As the BBC reported last month, “The UN’s Palestinian refugee agency UNRWA says its best estimate is that Israel has razed at least 260 buildings containing around 800 apartments… focusing on three refugee camps in the north of the West Bank: Jenin, Tulkarem and Nur Shams. UNRWA estimates that 42,000 Palestinians have been displaced from the camps since January.”

As a genocidal onslaught is inflicted on Palestinians living in the besieged Gaza Strip, Netanyahu and his ultra-nationalist settler allies have set their sights on escalating the West Bank’s colonization. Those operations appear to be similar in nature to Gaza, since they are making both areas uninhabitable for the indigenous Palestinian population and paving the way for further illegal Jewish-only colonies. Since October 2023, more than 900 Palestinians have been murdered, including nearly 200 children, in the West Bank by Israeli troops and settlers.