Palestinian Islamic Jihad publicly took credit for the attack against the troops, which took place when soldiers entered Jenin to arrest suspects wanted on terror charges.
By World Israel News Staff
Two men, one of whom is linked to the Palestinian Islamic Jihad (PIJ) terror group, were killed during an intense firefight with IDF troops in Jenin early Thursday morning.
According to an Israeli army statement, troops came under “massive gunfire” as they entered the Palestinian Authority-controlled city in order to arrest several men suspected of terror offenses.
Terrorists operating in Jenin opened fire and hurled Improvised Explosive Devices (IEDs) at troops. Two soldiers were injured when an EID hit their military jeep.
One of the soldiers was treated nearby, and the other soldier needed to be hospitalized. The family of the. soldier who was taken to the hospital has been informed about his injuries, the IDF said
Palestinian Authority Health Ministry identified the two men who were killed as Adham Jabareen, 28, and Jawad Bawaqta, 57. Jabareen is a member of Palestinian Islamic Jihad terror group.
The Palestinian Health Ministry claimed that Bawaqta, a teacher, was killed by troops while he was rendering aid to a wounded Jabareen.
PIJ publicly took credit for the attack against the troops.
Arabic language media reported that soldiers had aimed to arrest PIJ member Khaled Abu Zina, but he was not at home at the time of the raid.
Two of Abu Zina’s sons were reportedly arrested by Israeli security forces.
The raid occurred as part of the ongoing Operation Break the Wave anti-terror campaign, which was launched after a string of deadly attacks from March through May 2022 that saw the most Israelis killed in terror attacks since the Second Intifada.
Last week, Two Islamic Jihad terrorists were killed after they opened fire from a passing vehicle at Israeli forces near Jenin.
Troops who were conducting counterterrorism activities near the village of Jaba’ were shot at, the military said, adding that they returned fire at the car. The soldiers were not injured.