Jerusalem, Aug 8 (EFE).- The Israeli army destroyed early Tuesday morning the West Bank home of Abdel-Fattah Kharousha, a Palestinian accused of killing two Israeli brothers on February 26.
Kharousha was killed days later in an Israeli military operation.
An army statement said “the house of terrorist Abdel-Fattah Kharousha in the Askar refugee camp in Nablus” was destroyed overnight, adding that violent clashes erupted during the operation between Palestinians and Israeli troops, “who responded with anti-riot dispersal” measures.
The official Palestinian news agency, Wafa, stressed that at least six Palestinians were injured during the clashes, adding that six people lived in the destroyed third-floor apartment.
Kharousha, 49, was killed on March 7 during an Israeli raid in the West Bank city of Jenin, in which Israeli troops killed six Palestinian militiamen.
Two of his sons were also arrested during the raid, accused of involvement in planning the attack.
The attack attributed to him took place on February 26 on a road in the northern West Bank and resulted in the deaths of two Israeli brothers, Hilel and Yagel Yaniv, aged 22 and 20, who lived in the Jewish settlement of Har Bracha.
As part of its reprisals against militants accused of carrying out attacks against Israelis, Israel destroys the homes of their families, a policy denounced as “collective punishment” by human rights groups and which Israel has been applying for years in occupied Palestinian territory.
Israeli security forces say the approach is justified as a deterrent to prevent further attacks, while the current government coalition led by Benjamin Netanyahu — also made up of extreme right-wing groups — has pledged to step up the reprisals.
Tuesday’s destruction of Kharousha’s family home comes in the context of a prolonged spiral of violence in the area, which is experiencing its bloodiest year since the Second Intifada Palestinian uprising (2000-2005). EFE
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