At least 10 Palestinians, including a 72-year-old man, were killed in an Israeli military raid in the occupied West Bank, Palestinian officials said Wednesday.
Over 100 people were wounded during the rare daytime raid in the area and at least five of them are in critical condition. Also among the dead was a 16-year-old, according to the Palestinian Health Ministry.
The raid took place on Wednesday in the city of Nablus, a scene of frequent military activity. The Israeli military confirmed an operation was underway but gave no further information.
It was one of the deadliest incidents in nearly a year of fighting in the West Bank and east Jerusalem and raised the prospect of further bloodshed.
In their reaction, the Hamas armed group, which rules the Gaza Strip, said its "patience is running out."
The Israeli military gave few details about its operation in the northern city of Nablus. The city is known as a stronghold for armed groups and the army frequently operates there.
Palestinian officials said three of the dead Wednesday were members of organized armed groups. But a 72-year-old man was also killed.
There was no immediate word on whether the others killed belonged to armed groups.
Amateur video footage appeared to show Israeli troops operating in downtown Nablus, and army vehicles firing tear gas canisters.
Last month, Israeli troops killed 10 people in a similar raid in the northern West Bank. Within days, lone Palestinian attackers killed 10 Israelis in Jerusalem.
In the Gaza Strip, a spokesman for the ruling Hamas armed group issued a veiled threat.
"The resistance in Gaza is observing the enemy's escalating crimes against our people in the occupied West Bank, and its patience is running out," said Abu Obeda, a spokesman for the group.
The group has battled Israel in four wars since seizing control of Gaza in 2007, and Israeli officials have expressed concerns about rising tensions ahead of the Muslim holy month of Ramadan, which begins in March.
At least 55 Palestinians have been killed in the West Bank and East Jerusalem this year. Last year, nearly 150 Palestinians were killed in the West Bank and east Jerusalem, making it the deadliest year in those areas since 2004, according to figures by the Israeli rights group B'Tselem.
Israel claims that most of those killed were militants but others – including youths protesting the incursions and other people not involved in confrontations – have also been killed.
Israel says the military raids are meant to dismantle so-called militant networks and thwart future attacks while the Palestinians view them as the further entrenchment of Israel's open-ended, 55-year occupation.
Israel occupied the West Bank, East Jerusalem and the Gaza Strip in the 1967 Mideast war, territories the Palestinians seek for their hoped-for independent state.
