Israeli forces arrest journalist, injure 2 Palestinians in West Bank raids

Alaa Al-Rimawi arrested from his home in Ramallah less than a year after release from administrative detention

Israeli forces arrested a Palestinian journalist and injured two Palestinians during raids in the occupied West Bank early Thursday, while Israeli occupiers attacked Palestinian homes and set fire to agricultural land near Ramallah, according to local sources. In Ramallah, Israeli forces raided the home of journalist Alaa Al-Rimawi and arrested him before taking him to an undisclosed location, according to his family. Rimawi’s arrest came less than a year after he was released on Oct. 7, 2025, following two years in administrative detention. Rimawi is a Palestinian journalist who worked as a correspondent for Al Jazeera Mubasher and managed the G Media network. He was also known for his presence on social media platforms. Israel previously arrested Rimawi in April 2021 after raiding his home in Ramallah and placed him under administrative detention. He was released after about a month and a half following a hunger strike. In Nablus, Israeli forces raided the city before dawn, with military vehicles entering from the Deir Sharaf checkpoint west of the city and deploying around Al-Ain refugee camp, according to local sources. The forces raided homes and arrested several Palestinians, including a girl and her father from the Al-Masimi family. The identities of the other detainees were not immediately known. In Qalqilya province, a Palestinian man was shot with live ammunition, while another Palestinian with a disability suffered breathing difficulties after inhaling tear gas, the Palestinian Red Crescent Society said. Separately, Israeli occupiers attacked Palestinian homes and set fire to agricultural land in Burqa village east of Ramallah, with flames spreading toward residential areas, according to local sources. The sources told Anadolu that Israeli occupiers started a fire in the Al-Wad Al-Shami area of the village, which later spread and approached Palestinian homes. Burqa and neighboring villages east of Ramallah have faced repeated attacks by Israeli occupiers and military forces, including assaults on Palestinians and attacks on their homes, property, and crops, according to the sources. The occupied West Bank has witnessed escalating Israeli occupier terrorism and Israeli measures targeting Palestinians, their property and land. Israeli forces have intensified operations in the occupied West Bank since Oct. 8, 2023, when they began a genocidal war against the Gaza Strip. The operations include occupied East Jerusalem, with reports of killings, arrests, forced displacement, home demolitions, and settlement expansion.