Palestinian Prime Minister Mohammad Shtayyeh on Sunday accused Israeli leaders of committing crimes against the Palestinian people to improve their standing ahead of Israel’s general election.
Meeting with Egypt’s new ambassador to the Palestinian territories, Ihab Suleiman, at his office in Ramallah, the Palestinian premier called on Egypt to pressure Israel to "stop its violations and crimes against the Palestinian people", and said that "Palestinian blood is the driving force of the Israeli election.”
The Egyptian ambassador emphasized his country's support of the Palestinians, and said that all efforts are being made to strengthen bilateral relations.
Shtayyeh made the remarks as Israel imposed a lockdown on West Bank Palestinians Sunday night for the Jewish holiday of Simchat Torah as it tries to tame a wave of terrorist attacks on Israeli forces and civilians across the territory.
Israeli forces arrested a Palestinian suspected of involvement in terrorist activity in the city of Nablus. Troops clashed with locals who tried to prevent the arrest.
Earlier in the afternoon, Prime Minister Yair Lapid convened two meetings with the heads of the defense establishment, Alternate Prime Minister Naftali Bennett and Defense Minister Benny Gantz in the IDF headquarters in Tel Aviv.
Israeli counterterrorism raid in Nablus
The discussions dealt with the escalation in the West Bank and the manner of handling the Nablus-based armed militia known as the Lion’s Den which is responsible for most recent terrorist attacks in the region.
Earlier, the armed group announced that its people were behind a shooting and grenade attack on an IDF force Sunday morning in the Nablus area, and emphasized that all members of the squad who participated in the operation returned safely.