Israeli soldiers and armored vehicles during a raid in Nablus, in the occupied West Bank, on Aug.27, 2025. (Credit: Jaafar Ashtiyeh/AFP.)
The Israeli army launched a large-scale operation early Tuesday before dawn in the old city of Nablus, in the north of the occupied West Bank, deploying dozens of soldiers and armored vehicles, according to witnesses and Palestinian officials.
"This assault is an unjustified show of force," Nablus Governor Ghassan Daghlas told AFP.
The army confirmed to AFP that it was conducting an operation, without specifying its purpose.
Around 3 a.m. (midnight GMT), soldiers entered several neighborhoods of the old city — home to about 30,000 residents — focusing particularly on the eastern district of Harat al-Hableh, residents told AFP.
According to one of them, who requested anonymity, soldiers seized "white bags" of unknown contents from residents. Another witness, who also refused to give his name, reported that soldiers had expelled an elderly couple from their home, "probably turned into a military post."
The soldiers "storm and search houses and shops" and "some houses have been turned into military posts," Ghassan Hamdan, director of Palestinian Medical Relief in Nablus, also told AFP.
The army informed Palestinian authorities that the raid would continue until 4 p.m. (1 p.m. GMT,) according to the governor.
Clashes broke out at the eastern entrance to the old city, where youths threw stones at soldiers who responded with tear gas and live ammunition, according to local sources. The Palestinian Red Crescent reported several injuries, but none from gunfire.
The old city of Nablus has been targeted by several Israeli raids, notably in 2022-2023 as part of operations mainly targeting a group of fighters involved in attacks, and in 2002. The army carried out an operation there in early June, during which at least two Palestinians were killed.
On Tuesday, the army also operated in Ramallah, where the Palestinian Authority is based, targeting at least one currency exchange office. Police announced the seizure of more than 385,000 euros, funds allegedly linked to "terrorist activities," according to them.
80 Palestinians have been injured so far in the raid.
Al Jazeera received information from medical sources that the number of casualties in the city jumped to 80, including one Palestinian who was wounded with live ammunition.
Violence in the West Bank, a territory occupied by Israel since 1967, has surged since the start of the war in Gaza, triggered by an unprecedented Hamas attack on Israeli soil on Oct. 7, 2023.
According to an AFP count based on Palestinian Authority data, at least 972 Palestinians, including many fighters, have been killed there since by Israeli soldiers or settlers. At least 36 Israelis, both civilians and soldiers, have been killed there in Palestinian attacks or during Israeli military operations, according to official Israeli data.
