Palestinian Islamic Jihad leader arrested in Israeli raid in West Bank

Bassam al-Saadi, here in 2013, is one of the leaders of Islamic Jihad in the West Bank.

AFP - SAIF DAHLAH

Text by: RFI Follow

2 mins

This Monday evening, the Israeli army carried out a vast operation in the refugee camp of Jenin, a city in the north of the occupied West Bank and known to be the heart of the Palestinian "armed resistance".

Exchanges of fire took place and a 17-year-old Palestinian was killed.

One of the leaders of Palestinian Islamic Jihad in the West Bank has been arrested along with his son-in-law.

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With our correspondent in Ramallah,

According to the Israeli army, "

 " led by the Shin Bet entered the Jenin camp on Monday evening with the objective of arresting "

 ".

The soldiers were met with gunfire from armed Palestinian militants.

They fought back.

A shooting then ensued which claimed the life of Dirar al-Kafrini, a 17-year-old Palestinian.

"

," the Palestinian health ministry said in a statement.

But during this raid, the Israeli army mainly arrested Basaam al-Saadi, one of the senior figures of the Palestinian Islamic Jihad in the West Bank.

This former prisoner had been wanted by Israel for a long time, because he and his family played an essential role in “

 ”.

Two of his sons were killed during Israel's large-scale invasion of Jenin refugee camp in 2002.

This Tuesday, videos and images shared on social media showed traces of blood on the floor of al-Saadi's house after the arrest.

His son-in-law was also arrested, his wife, injured, is in hospital.

According to the Israeli army, the two suspects were " 

" for interrogation.

Since late March, Israeli security forces have been carrying out near-daily operations in the West Bank following a series of attacks by Palestinians and Palestinian citizens of Israel, in which 19 people lost their lives.

Over the same period, 55 Palestinians have been killed since the end of March during raids by the Israeli army.

►Also read: West Bank: in Jenin, "besieged" by the Israeli army, the market looks gray

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• Israel

• Palestinian territories

• Israelo-Palestinian conflict