Israel army closes areas near Gaza citing reprisals risk
Israel's army closed areas near the Gaza border to civilians Tuesday, citing a risk of reprisals, following the overnight arrest of two senior Palestinian Islamic Jihad members, the military and Palestinian sources said.
A 17-year-old Palestinian was shot dead by Israeli forces during a late Monday raid in the flashpoint West Bank district of Jenin.
Islamic Jihad identified the teenager as Dirar al-Kafrayni, and said he was a member of the group and "our heroic martyr".
The army said it had operated alongside police, who arrested "two wanted terror suspects."
A Palestinian security source, who requested anonymity, told AFP that one of those detained was Bassem al-Saadi, a senior figure in Islamic Jihad's political wing in the West Bank.
The source identified the second person detained as Saadi's son-in-law, a Jenin-based fundraiser for the militant group.
The Israeli military said it was preventing civilian access to areas near Gaza "due to a direct threat".
"After terrorist activities were identified with the Palestinian Islamic Jihad terrorist organisation, it was decided to block off areas and routes adjacent to the Gaza Strip security fence," an army statement said.
Israel also closed its only border crossing for people entering or leaving Gaza, while the government said Prime Minister Yair Lapid was reviewing security.
As news of the deadly raid spread, crowds began to gather in Jenin refugee camp and the nearby city of Nablus, as supporters voiced solidarity with Islamic Jihad.
"We declare alertness and raise the readiness of our mujahideen (fighters)," the group said in a statement late Monday.
Saadi was injured by an Israeli army dog during his arrest, the Palestinian source said.
Home to some 2.3 million Palestinians, Gaza has been under Israeli blockade since 2007 when Islamist group Hamas ousted forces loyal to Palestinian president Mahmud Abbas.
Islamic Jihad, a militant group with close links to Iran, has a strong presence in Gaza, regularly using it as a launchpad for rocket attacks against Israel.
The latest unrest comes amid rising violence in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.
At least 55 Palestinians have been killed since late March, mostly in the West Bank.
They have included suspected militants and also non-combatants, among them Al Jazeera journalist Shireen Abu Akleh, a Palestinian-American dual national, who was covering an Israeli raid in Jenin.
Attacks on Israeli targets have killed 19 people over the same period, most of them civilians killed in attacks inside Israel. Three Israeli Arab attackers have also been killed.
