Israel arrests 40 more Palestinians in military raids in West Bank

At least 40 more Palestinians were detained in Israeli military raids in the occupied West Bank, according to prisoners' affairs groups on Thursday.

A number of children were among the detainees, the Commission of Detainees' Affairs and the Palestinian Prisoner Society said in a joint statement.

The arrests took place in the cities of Hebron, Bethlehem, Nablus, Jerusalem, and Jericho, the statement said.

The new wave of arrests brought to 8,310 the number of Palestinians detained by the Israeli army in the West Bank since last October, according to Palestinian figures.

Tensions have been high across the occupied West Bank since Israel launched a deadly military offensive against the Gaza Strip, which killed more than 33,900 people following a Hamas attack on Oct. 7, 2023.

At least 468 Palestinians have since been killed and over 4,800 others injured by Israeli army fire in the occupied territory, according to the Health Ministry.

Israel stands accused of genocide at the International Court of Justice, which in an interim ruling in January ordered Tel Aviv to stop genocidal acts and take measures to guarantee that humanitarian assistance is provided to civilians in Gaza.