The Israeli Army announced on Friday, August 28 that it launched a drone strike in the northern West Bank city of Jenin, killing three Palestinian resistance fighters. It added that Qais Bitawi, whom it described as a Hamas operative in the dismantled Jenin Brigade, was among the fatalities.

The other two slain men were identified as Basel Turkman and Ahmad Yaqoub Turkman, according to local media outlets which also reported that the bodies of the three Palestinians were confiscated by the Israeli forces.

The deadly attack marks the first Israeli airstrike in the occupied West Bank in 10 months. It was also carried out as part of Israel’s extensive military operations in the occupied territory that started in January 2025.

Read more: After the “Iron Wall”: Israel launches another large-scale operation in northern West Bank

Palestinian resistance groups respond

While the Israeli forces claimed that Bitawi was affiliated with Hamas, the Palestinian Islamic Jihad issued a statement on Friday, declaring that the three men were fighters in its military wing, the Saraya al-Quds Brigades.

The movement denounced the assault as a “cowardly assassination”, asserting that “it will remain steadfast on the path of jihad and resistance until liberation and return.”

The Palestinian resistance movement Hamas issued a statement, affirming that “this heinous crime will only be met with more anger and confrontation, as the West Bank will remain a source of revolutionaries and heroism.”

The movement held the Israeli occupation “fully responsible for the repercussions of this strike, the escalating crimes, and the continuation of its brutal policy” that involves killing and terrorizing the Palestinian people, and demolishing their houses.

It also called on “the Palestinian people in Jenin and other West Bank governorates to escalate all forms of resistance and disrupt the enemy’s security calculations.”

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