Israeli forces arrested 72 Palestinians in Jerusalem while searching for Udai Tamimi: lawyer

Israeli forces arrested 72 Palestinians in Jerusalem while searching for Udai Tamimi: lawyer
"Life in Shuafat has been deeply affected by the closure, and it will take time to recover," Nawal Hijazi, journalist and resident of the besieged camp, told .
3 min read
West Bank
18 October, 2022
Israeli forces on Monday partially eased their closure on the Shuafat refugee camp, imposed ten days ago. [Getty]

Israeli forces arrested eight Palestinians in Jerusalem's Anata neighbourhood and  based on claims that they were aiding Udai Tamimi, the Palestinian whom Israel has been trying to capture for the past ten days.

Israel accuses Tamimi of killing two Israeli soldiers and wounding another at an Israeli checkpoint outside of Shuafat camp on 8 October.

Israeli forces and the town of Anata, confronting local youth who threw stones and fireworks at them,  while they conducted the arrests.

The arrests and confrontations in Shuafat and Anata follow a string of raids by Israeli armed forces in Jerusalem's Palestinian neighbourhoods throughout last week, especially in Jabal Al-Mukaber, Issawiyah, Silwan and Sur Baher.

"Throughout last week, in several parts of Jerusalem," Madhat Dibeh, a Jerusalem-based Palestinian lawyer and activist, told .

"These include 11 arrested on Tuesday, suspected of aiding Odai Tamimi," said Dibeh. "Many of the arrested were released, while most of them remain in custody under interrogation."

"Two of them, a brother and a sister, were transferred to the, as they are holders of Palestinian West Bank IDs and not Jerusalem residents," he added.

Meanwhile, Israeli forces partially eased on Monday its military closure on the Shuafat refugee camp, as they continue to search for Tamimi.

"Life in Shuafat has been , and it will take time to recover," Nawal Hijazi, journalist and resident of the besieged camp, told .

"The UN medical centre exhausted its medicine supply in the first six days, and there are some 3,000 permanently ill people, including 800 with disabilities who haven't been able to go to their medical appointments outside the camp," Hijazi pointed out.

"Thousands of daily workers remained without income for the whole week, and many lost their jobs," she added.

The attacks in Jerusalem by Israeli forces are part of a larger , which includes an ongoing Israeli military closure on the city of Nablus that has persisted for the eighth day.

Israeli forces also arrested early on Tuesday 11 Palestinians from across the occupied West Bank.

According to the Palestinian Prisoners' Club, Israeli forces have arrested at least 5,300 Palestinians since the beginning of 2022.