Israel says its forces are “operating with full force” in the West Bank to combat “Iranian-Islamic infrastructures.” Health officials in the Palestinian territory say several Palestinians have been killed in fighting.

The Israeli military carried out raids across the occupied West Bank on Wednesday in what Foreign Minister Israel Katz said was a bid “to dismantle Iranian-Islamic terror infrastructures” in the Jenin and Tulkarem refugee camps. 

Palestinian officials said at least nine Palestinians have been killed in fighting in the two cities. The Israeli military said it killed “five terrorists in an operations room” in Nur Shams camp in Tulkarem.

Since Israel began its retaliation against the Islamist extremist group Hamas in the Gaza Strip in response to the deadly October 7 attacks on Israel, the Israeli military has been carrying out near-daily raids in the West Bank that it says aim to root out militant groups there.

At least 652 Palestinians in the West Bank have been killed by Israeli fire since the war in Gaza began some 10 months ago, according to the Palestinian Health Ministry.

Many of those killed have been armed fighters, but there are also civilian casualties among the dead.

What has Israel said?

In his posting on messaging platform X, formerly Twitter, Katz wrote, “Iran is working to establish an eastern terror front against Israel in Judea and Samaria,” using a term for the West Bank frequently employed by Israeli officials.

Katz said Iran was “funding and arming terrorists and smuggling advanced weapons from Jordan” into the West Bank.

“We must address this threat with the same determination used against terror infrastructures in Gaza, including temporary evacuation of Palestinian residents and any necessary measures,” he wrote. “This is a war, and we must win it.”

Israel, Germany, the United States and several other countries designate Hamas a terrorist organization.

Jenin access reportedly blocked

According to Palestinians, Israeli forces have sealed off the city of Jenin.

Jenin Governor Kamal Abu al-Rub told Palestinian radio that the city was surrounded with access to and from it blocked. He said access to hospitals had also been sealed off.

Palestinian militant groups said they were exchanging fire with the Israeli military.

Much of the West Bank is under Israeli military rule, with the Palestinian Authority in limited control of some areas.

The territory is home to some 3 million Palestinians and more than 500,000 Jewish settlers.