Israel resumed its aerial and artillery bombardment of the Gaza Strip on Friday, killing three Palestinians and wounding several others. Meanwhile, UNRWA announced that nearly two million people in Gaza are in urgent need of shelter assistance. Seventy thousand Palestinians performed Friday prayers at Al-Aqsa Mosque. The Israeli army ceased notifying Palestinian security forces in advance of raids on towns and villages in the West Bank. Settler attacks in the West Bank escalated, with settlers storming Hebron under the protection of the Israeli army, which imposed a complete closure on the city.
Three Palestinians, including a medical student and a child, were killed on Friday in various parts of the Gaza Strip. Two of them died from wounds sustained in previous Israeli attacks.
In the occupied West Bank, the commander of the Israeli army’s Central Command, Avi Blot, issued an order to halt the provision of any advance information or updates to Palestinian security forces regarding anticipated military operations in the West Bank, fearing that such information would be leaked to armed elements, according to the newspaper Makor Rishon.
This comes as the city of Hebron witnessed a field escalation and tightened military measures on Friday, coinciding with the arrival of thousands of settlers from Israeli settlements and outposts in Hebron and the West Bank to participate in the celebrations of what is called “Sarah’s Sabbath.” A widespread closure affected the Ibrahimi Mosque, the Old City, and several neighborhoods in the city. Occupation forces imposed a tight siege on the city.
Meanwhile, tens of thousands of Palestinians performed Friday prayers at the Al-Aqsa Mosque. The Islamic Waqf Department stated that approximately 70,000 people prayed at the Al-Aqsa Mosque, despite obstacles imposed by the Israeli occupation, particularly in the vicinity of the Old City of Jerusalem.
