Israeli soldiers abducted at least 20 citizens, including a child and former political prisoners, from their homes in several parts of the occupied West Bank overnight until early Monday morning.
In a joint statement, the Palestinian Prisoners’ Society and the Commission of Detainees and Ex-Detainees Affairs said that the abductions were spread across most of the West Bank governorates, especially in Hebron, Qalqilia, Ramallah, Bethlehem, and Jericho.
During these abduction campaigns, the occupation forces continue to carry out extensive invasions accompanied by assaults and threats against the abductees and their families, as well as vandalism and destruction of citizens’ homes, cars, lands, and other property.
The statement pointed out that Israeli forces have abducted more than 10,700 Palestinians from the West Bank, including the occupied capital, Jerusalem, since the start of the ongoing genocide against the Palestinian people in the Gaza Strip and the serious escalation in the West Bank, on October 7, 2023.
While Israel continues to refuse to specify the number of Palestinians who were abducted in Gaza, the numbers are estimated to be in the thousands, at least 5,000, including children, women, elders, medical staff, and journalists.
The statement explained that these abduction campaigns come amid the comprehensive aggression as a retaliatory measure, falling under the crime of collective punishment in violation of international law, the Fourth Geneva Convention, and all related international agreements.
