Latest | Hamas commander killed in West Bank clashes

Hamas said one of its commanders in the occupied West Bank was killed in a clash with Israeli forces, while Israel said four soldiers were killed in an explosion in Rafah.

In a statement released late Monday, Hamas said Mohammed Jaber Abdo was killed along with three other fighters in a village near Ramallah, where the Western-backed Palestinian Authority is headquartered.

A joint statement by the Israeli army and police on Monday said undercover agents had tracked down a suspect wanted in connection with an attack on a nearby Jewish settlement.

Since the start of the Gaza war, which was triggered by Hamas’ attack on southern Israel on October 7, violence in the West Bank has increased.

Since then, more than 530 Palestinians have been killed by Israeli fire in the West Bank, according to the Palestinian Health Ministry. Most of them have died during violent protests or Israeli arrest raids, which often turn into shootings.

Israeli media, citing anonymous security officials, reported that four soldiers were killed on Monday when explosive devices they were using to clear the building detonated prematurely. The building collapsed, killing four soldiers and wounding 11. Hamas said it booby-trapped the building and attacked the soldiers with mortar shells after the explosion.

Earlier on Monday, the UN Security Council overwhelmingly approved a US resolution welcoming a proposal for a ceasefire between Israel and Hamas.

Israel’s war against Hamas in Gaza has killed more than 36,730 people, according to the Gaza Health Ministry, which does not distinguish between fighters and civilians in its count. Palestinians are suffering from widespread hunger as the war has largely disrupted supplies of food, medicine and other goods. UN agencies estimate that over a million people in Gaza could face peak starvation deaths by mid-July.

Israel began the war after the Hamas attack on October 7, in which militants entered southern Israel, killing around 1,200 people – mostly civilians – and abducting around 250.

At the moment:

– Blinken returns to Middle East as Israel-Hamas ceasefire proposal hangs in the balance after hostage release

— How an Israeli raid freed four hostages and killed at least 274 Palestinians in Gaza

– What does Israel’s rescue of four prisoners and the killing of 274 Palestinians mean for the ceasefire talks?

— Centrist Benny Gantz leaves Israel’s war cabinet because he is dissatisfied with Netanyahu

Follow AP’s coverage of the war in Gaza at https://apnews.com/hub/israel-hamas-war.

Here is the latest information:

4 Israeli soldiers killed in explosion in Rafah

TEL AVIV, Israel – The Israeli military said four soldiers were killed in an explosion in the city of Rafah in the southern Gaza Strip.

Israeli media, citing unnamed security officials, reported that the soldiers were killed on Monday when the explosive devices they had used to clear the building detonated prematurely, causing the building to collapse, killing four soldiers and injuring 11.

The militant Hamas group said it booby-trapped the building and attacked the soldiers with mortar shells after the explosion.

The military targeted the building because it believed it was home to a Hamas member who was involved in the 2006 kidnapping of Israeli soldier Gilad Shalit, who was held in the Gaza Strip for five years, Israeli media reported.

Israel launched a limited ground offensive in parts of Rafah in early May. Around a million Palestinians, most of them already displaced from other parts of Gaza, have fled the offensive in Rafah. The United Nations estimates that only 200,000 to 300,000 people are still in the city.

According to the military, at least 298 soldiers have been killed since the ground offensive in the Gaza Strip began after Hamas attacked southern Israel on October 7, triggering the war.

Hamas commander killed in West Bank

RAMALLAH, West Bank – Hamas says one of its commanders in the occupied West Bank was killed in a clash with Israeli forces.

In a statement released late Monday, Hamas said Mohammed Jaber Abdo was killed along with three other fighters in a village near Ramallah, where the Western-backed Palestinian Authority is based. Abdo had spent 20 years in Israeli prisons, it said.

A joint statement by the Israeli army and police on Monday said undercover agents had tracked down a suspect wanted in connection with an attack on a nearby Jewish settlement.

It was said that the man was hiding in a building with three other suspects and that officers opened fire when they tried to run them over with a car and flee. Weapons were found in the car, it was said.

Since the start of the Gaza war, which was triggered by Hamas’ attack on southern Israel on October 7, violence in the West Bank has increased.

According to the Palestinian Health Ministry, more than 530 Palestinians have been killed by Israeli fire since then, most of them during violent protests or Israeli raids that often turn into shootings.

Israel conquered the West Bank, Gaza and East Jerusalem in the 1967 Middle East War. The Palestinians want all three territories for their future state.