Israeli forces arrest 14 Palestinians

The Israeli occupation forces raided the Awarta village east of Nablus and ransacked homes early Thursday, the head of the local municipality said, as 14 Palestinians were detained overnight. Sami Awwad told (Ma'an) news agency that forces entered the town at about 1 a.m. with more than 20 military vehicles and ransacked homes. They questioned three people , Baha Darawsha, Muhammad Abadat and Mahmoud Darawsha, and searched their homes along with the house of Jibril Awad. An Israeli military spokeswoman said one person was arrested in the Awarta raid, and 13 others across the West Bank. Four people were detained in Azzun village, one each from Qalqiliya and Dura, near Hebron, two in Battir and five in Beit Awa, the spokeswoman said. She said the detainees were transferred to security forces for questioning. A Palestinian was also detained at a checkpoint in Hebron because he was carrying a knife, she said.