News - Middle East: The Palestinian resistance movement Hamas has praised the recent car ramming in retaliation for Israeli settler violence in the occupied West Bank.

The “heroic” act, Hamas stated on Tuesday, underscores the steadfastness of the Palestinian people in resisting the growing crimes of Israel in the occupied territories.

A Palestinian individual carried out the car ramming near the Nafaq checkpoint located between occupied al-Quds and Bethlehem.

“The heroic operation against the Zionists in Bethlehem emphasizes that our resistant people will never remain silent in the face of the enemy's increasing crimes in the Gaza Strip and the West Bank.”

The resistance group said the sacrifice of the martyr who carried out the operation will serve as a catalyst for freedom and will continue to lead the charge in liberating Palestinian land and expelling the occupiers. 

Hamas said the increasing number of resistance operations sends a clear message that the Palestinian people will not tolerate the policies of genocide and settlement expansion.

Earlier in the day, Israeli reports said a car ramming and shooting incident near the Nafaq checkpoint resulted in the injury of at least three Israeli settlers.

Palestine’s official Wafa news agency, citing the General Authority for Civil Affairs, said the alleged perpetrator of the ramming was shot and killed by Israeli forces. 

The Palestinian man was identified as 32-year-old Mahdi Muhammad Awad Dirieh.

According to the report, Israeli forces have sealed off all entrances into the Bethlehem governorate.

The latest development came a day after a truck driven by a Palestinian purportedly accelerated toward Israeli troops at the Jit Junction — near the Palestinian town of the same name and east of the city of Qalqilya, killing an Israeli soldier.

Hamas said the ramming was in response to Israel’s ongoing genocidal war against the Palestinians in Gaza.

Since October 7, 2023, the Israeli military and settlers have intensified their aggression towards Palestinians throughout the West Bank, following the initiation of the genocidal war in the Gaza Strip, killing hundreds of Palestinians and injuring thousands more across the occupied territory.

Over 700,000 Israelis reside in more than 230 settlements established since the Israeli occupation of the West Bank and East al-Quds in 1967.

The international community considers the settlements to be unlawful under international law and the Geneva Conventions, as they are built in occupied territories.

Source: Press TV