TULKARM, Saturday, November 03, 2018 (WAFA) – Israeli forces Saturday set up checkpoints on all entrances to the northern West Bank city of Tulkarm and prevented its residents from leaving it in a step seen as a collective punishment measure against the city’s Palestinian residents, according to WAFA correspondent.

She said that Israeli forces set up checkpoints on all of the city’s entrances and side roads, stopped cars, inspected their occupants and then turned them back preventing them from leaving the city to reach their work places or schools outside of it.

Meanwhile, Israeli soldiers raided several suburbs in the city, broke into homes and ransacked them.

Tulkarm has been the target for almost daily raids and searches after the Israeli army has intensified its presence in that area under the pretext of pursuing Ashraf Na’alweh, 23, the main suspect in killing two Israeli settlers in the illegal Israel settlement of Barkan on October 7.

The army has distributed leaflets to the residents warning them against hiding Na’alweh and to turn him in. Na’alweh’s parents and sisters have been under constant harassment by the army ever since the incident.

Na‘alweh‘s mother, Wafaa, a former prisoner is currently detained in Israel, along with his sister, Fayrouz, 35, and brother, Amjad, 33, who is also a former prisoner, in an attempt to pressure Ashraf to turn himself in after all army attempts to apprehend him have failed.

K.T./M.K.