Ramallah (Palestinian Territories) (AFP) – Israeli troops demolished the home of a Palestinian accused of the May killing of a soldier on Saturday, completing a night-long incursion into the Palestinian-controlled city of Ramallah.
The raid on the West Bank city where Palestinian president Mahmud Abbas has his headquarters triggered clashes with angry residents following a week of rising tensions.
Both army and border police units took part in the operation, including members of of the commando unit in which the soldier was serving when he was killed by a slab hurled from a building during an army raid.
Several hundred soldiers entered the city’s Al-Amari refugee camp late Friday, leaving on Saturday morning, AFP journalists reported.
“During the operation, dozens of Palestinians instigated a number of violent riots. The rioters hurled rocks towards the forces, who responded with riot dispersal means,” the army said.
Inside the camp, soldiers demolished the home of Islam Abu Hamid, who was arrested in June for the soldier’s killing.
The family house was completely destroyed in a controlled explosion, AFP correspondents at the scene said.
Neighbours said several hundred residents, including children, were ordered out of their homes and kept in a sports field in the cold of night while the army operation continued.
Israel regularly demolishes the homes of Palestinians who carry out attacks against Israelis.
It argues it is a deterrent though critics say it amounts to collective punishment.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has faced pressure from right-wing rivals and Jewish settlers for a strong response following the fatal shooting of two soldiers on Thursday.
It was the third deadly attack by Palestinian gunmen in the West Bank in two months and set off demonstrations by settler groups on whose support Netanyahu’s government depends.
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