RAMALLAH / Qais Abu Samra / Anadolu

The Israeli army arrested at least 40 Palestinians, including 5 women, freed prisoners, and 15 workers from the Gaza Strip, during a widespread raid campaign in the occupied West Bank from Tuesday evening until Wednesday morning.

The Palestinian Prisoner's Club said Wednesday that the Israeli army arrested 40 citizens in the West Bank, including 5 women from the governorates of Tubas and Tulkarm (north), Hebron and Bethlehem (south), and Jerusalem, in addition to 15 workers from the Gaza Strip arrested in the Qalqilya governorate (north).

The club noted that women face a 'notable escalation' in targeting policies through ongoing arrest campaigns, including being held hostage, nighttime home raids, and subjected to harsh interrogation methods, in addition to increasing arrests under the pretext of what Israel describes as 'incitement' on social media.

Earlier Wednesday, the Prisoners' Information Office (non-governmental) said the Israeli army arrested 37 Palestinians, including freed prisoners, two women, and 15 workers from the Gaza Strip.

He explained that the arrest campaign covered several governorates as follows:

In Tulkarm governorate (north), Israeli forces arrested 6 Palestinians, including a woman, after raiding their homes in the city and Far'un village.

In Jenin governorate (north), forces arrested 6 young men from Qabatiya town south of Jenin city.

They also arrested 3 Palestinians from Hebron governorate (south) and 3 others from Bethlehem governorate (south) after raiding their homes.

In Tubas governorate (northeast), they arrested two brothers from Tamun village.

In Al-Ram town in the eastern part of Jerusalem, Israeli forces arrested a Palestinian and his wife after raiding their home.

The office added that Israeli forces also arrested 15 workers from the Gaza Strip while they were in Qalqilya governorate (northwest), after assaulting them with beatings.

Hundreds of Palestinians from the Gaza Strip were working in Israel, and with Tel Aviv launching a genocide on October 7, 2023, and closing all crossings, workers remained stranded in areas of the West Bank, and a large number of them were arrested and deported to Gaza.

The Prisoners' Information Office said that among the detainees are freed prisoners, without specifying their place of arrest.

He explained that daily arrest campaigns come within a policy of ongoing escalation in the West Bank, accompanied by home invasions, search operations, damage, and attacks on citizens.

The Israeli army has not issued an immediate comment on the arrest campaign.

The West Bank has witnessed an escalation in attacks by the Israeli army and settlers since October 2023, resulting in the killing of 1,182 Palestinians, in addition to arresting nearly 24,000 Palestinians, according to official information.