Israel occupies border area between Egypt and Gaza while IDF soldiers are killed in the West Bank

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The Israeli military said two of its soldiers were killed in a car-ramming attack in the occupied West Bank.

According to the Israel Defense Forces (IDF), a report of the incident near the Palestinian city of Nablus was received late Wednesday evening. The military said the attacker fled the scene and soldiers had launched a search for him.

On Thursday, the military said the soldiers hit had died and senior military officials had launched an initial investigation into the attack.

Israeli army radio reported that the attacker surrendered to Palestinian security forces, but this report could not be immediately confirmed.

Since the start of the Gaza war, violence in the West Bank has increased. Israel has carried out raids on Palestinian towns and villages to crush militant resistance. More than 500 Palestinians have already died.

Most of the deaths occurred in clashes with the military, but some Palestinians were also shot after throwing stones, while others were killed without being involved in clashes.

Palestinian attacks on Israelis have also increased in the area.

Israel occupies key territory on the border between Gaza and Egypt

Israeli forces said on Wednesday they had taken control of a strategic corridor along the Gaza-Egypt border to cut off smuggling tunnels as part of their efforts to destroy Hamas.

The capture of the Philadelphia Corridor could complicate Israel’s relations with Egypt, which complains about Israel’s advance on its border. According to Israel, the corridor is riddled with tunnels through which weapons and other goods have been smuggled to Hamas despite a years-long blockade by Israel and Egypt.

Israel has also expanded its incursion into the southern Gaza city of Rafah, where hundreds of thousands have sought shelter from the fighting and where dozens of Palestinians have been killed in increasing violence in recent days.

The Israeli military said a fifth brigade consisting of several thousand soldiers joined the troops operating in the city on Tuesday.

Egypt says any troop buildup in the strategic border region would violate the two countries’ 1979 peace agreement. Egypt has already complained about Israel’s occupation of the Rafah border crossing, the only crossing between Gaza and Egypt.

“The Philadelphia Corridor served as Hamas’ oxygen pipeline, through which Hamas regularly smuggled weapons into Gaza,” said Israeli military spokesman Rear Admiral Daniel Hagari.

China promises more aid for Gaza at Chinese-Arab summit

At the opening of a summit with heads of state and government of Arab states on Thursday, Chinese President Xi Jinping reiterated his call for the establishment of an independent Palestinian state and promised more humanitarian aid for the people of the Gaza Strip.

“Since last October, the Palestinian-Israeli conflict has escalated dramatically and caused enormous suffering to the people,” Xi said in a speech at the opening of the China-Arab Cooperation Forum in Beijing. “The war should not continue indefinitely.”

He reiterated China’s support for a two-state solution and pledged 500 million yuan ($70 million) in humanitarian aid to Gaza. He also promised to donate 2.7 million euros to a UN agency that provides aid and support to refugees from the war between Israel and Hamas.

Beijing and the Arab states support the Palestinians in the conflict. Israel is facing increasing international criticism after at least 45 civilians were killed in an Israeli attack in the southern Gaza city of Rafah at the weekend.

According to the Gaza Health Ministry, the total number of Palestinian deaths in the war has exceeded 36,000.