JERUSALEM, May 27, 2026 (WAFA) – Israeli occupation forces on Wednesday detained 11 Palestinians, including a journalist, mostly in predawn raids across the occupied West Bank, according to local and security sources.
They said that the occupying forces rounded up Feras Ad-Dibs, a journalist from the Islamic Waqf Department, and a woman from the vicinity of Hutta Gate, one of the gates leading to Al-Aqsa Mosque.
They handed Saif Kwasmi, a journalist, an order banning him from the mosque compound for a week and requiring him to appear before Israeli intelligence.
Still in the Jerusalem governorate, soldiers showed up at a house in the Anata town, broke inside, conducted a thorough search, and eventually detained an occupant.
In the Ramallah governorate, the sources confirmed a raid in Deir Jarir village, resulting in the detention of a villager.
In the Jenin governorate, the occupation forces raided the Qabatiya town, deploying infantry units, breaking into several homes, and rounding up three residents.
In the Nablus governorate, the gun-toting soldiers barged their way into Tell and Beit Iba towns, ransacking several homes and detaining four occupants.
This came as Israeli soldiers denied Palestinian families access to ash-Shuhada Cemetery on the outskirts of Jenin refugee camp, unleashing barrages of teargas canisters at Palestinians attempting to visit the graves of their relatives.
The occupation forces frequently raid Palestinian houses almost daily across the West Bank on the pretext of searching for “wanted” Palestinians, triggering clashes with residents.
These raids are conducted without a search warrant, whenever and wherever the military chooses, in keeping with its sweeping, arbitrary powers.
Under Israeli military law, army commanders have full executive, legislative, and judicial authority over 3 million Palestinians living in the West Bank. Palestinians have no say in how this authority is exercised.
According to the latest figures from Addameer, the Palestinian Prisoner Support and Human Rights Association, there are currently 9,400 Palestinian political prisoners in Israeli prisons and detention centers, including 360 child prisoners and 87 female prisoners.
This number includes approximately 3,376 Palestinians placed under “administrative detention”, which allows the detention of Palestinians without charge or trial for renewable intervals ranging between three and six months based on undisclosed evidence that even a detainee’s lawyer is barred from viewing.
The mass arrest of Palestinians is nothing new. According to a 2017 report by Addameer, over the past 50 years, more than 800,000 Palestinians have been imprisoned or detained by Israel, this figure is now believed to be closer to 1 million. This means that about 40% of Palestinian men and boys living under military occupation have been deprived of their freedom. Almost every Palestinian family has suffered the imprisonment of a loved one.
