IOF Onslaught Turns to Nablus

IOF Onslaught Turns to Nablus

NABLUS, Palestine -- The Israeli occupying forces (IOF) started a wide offensive on the city of Nablus and its suburbs, in which two homes were blown up while troops occupied houses and public buildings there.

IPC correspondent reported that the IOF invasion began at 11:30 pm last night, when 70 Israeli military jeeps and ten armored personnel carriers invaded the city of Nablus and deployed troops in several parts of the city. The troops then occupied more houses and buildings in addition to those already occupied in the past couple of days.

The Israeli forces also raided the Al Basal market area and blew up the house of Nayef Abu Sharkh, who is believed to be the leader of the Al Aqsa Martyrs Brigades, the military wing of Fateh movement in Nablus.

35 of Abu Sharkh's family members found themselves homeless with no shelter, when the occupying forces dynamited the four-storey building, without giving them any chance of evacuating furniture or personal belongings. Many adjoining houses were severely damaged due to the demolition.

Abu Sharkh's brothers, Ghassan and Jihad, were both arrested after the house demolition, and were led to an undisclosed location, locals mentioned.

Meanwhile, the Israeli forces destroyed another house in the old town part of Nablus, eyewitnesses told IPC's.

The witnesses added that the occupying forces surrounded the old town, and then detonated the house of Sami Salama, who blew himself up at the Al Hamra military checkpoint in the Jordan Valley area few days ago.

Locals stated that many house fronts collapsed while others were severely damaged due to the blast, as the buildings of the old town part were historic ones and could not bear the intensity of the explosives IOF troops used.

IOF continue to surround the old town, under an umbrella of heavy and random gunfire at citizens and their homes there, IPC's reported.

In the same context, a contingent of IOF troops raided the local fire department in the city and occupied it, in order to use it as a command post for the IOF invasion of Nablus.

Yousef Al Jabi, the director of the Nablus fire department, told IPC's that the Israeli soldiers raided the fire department and herded the staff of the department into a very small room. He recounted that the soldiers abused and ill treated them until five in the morning, when they left the building.

In the meantime, the occupying forces invaded the Ein Beit El Ma'a refugee camp and raided several houses there. Eyewitnesses confirmed that a number of citizens were arrested during a search campaign of these houses.

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