Israel arrests 40 Palestinians in West Bank: Prisoners group

RAMALLAH, Palestine

The Israeli army on Saturday arrested 40 Palestinians across the West Bank, bringing the total number of detainees in one week to 400, according to the Palestinian Prisoners Club.

In a statement, the club said “the arrests took place in the governorates of Hebron, Jenin, Nablus, Jericho, and Bethlehem, in addition to Jerusalem," the occupied city planned to be the seat of a Palestinian state.

There was no statement from Israeli authorities on the Palestinian group’s statement.

Since last Saturday, the Israeli army has arrested a total of 400 Palestinians, the club noted.

Israel currently has 5,800 Palestinians in its prisons, according to the group.

In a dramatic escalation of Middle East tensions, a week ago Israeli forces launched a sustained and forceful military campaign against the Gaza Strip, a response to a military offensive by the Palestinian group Hamas in Israeli territories.

The conflict began last Saturday when Hamas initiated Operation Al-Aqsa Flood against Israel, a multi-pronged surprise attack including a barrage of rocket launches and infiltrations into Israel via land, sea, and air.

Hamas said the operation was in retaliation for the storming of the Al-Aqsa Mosque in occupied East Jerusalem and Israeli settlers’ growing violence against Palestinians.

The Israeli military then launched Operation Swords of Iron against Hamas targets within the Gaza Strip.

Israel's response has extended into cutting water and electricity supplies to Gaza, further worsening the living conditions in an area that endured a crippling siege since 2007, as well as ordering over 1 million Gazans to evacuate their homes in the north and go to the south in less than 24 hours.

*Writing by Ikram Kouachi