NABLUS (National Times) – Israeli forces killed two Palestinians during an overnight raid in the occupied West Bank, officials on the two sides said Sunday, in what Israel described as a shootout with gunmen.

The Israeli army said it carried out operations and used live fire in several locations, including in Nablus, adding it arrested four “individuals suspected of involvement in terrorist activities”.

The military said “hits” were identified against multiple “terrorists” and said there were no reported wounded on its own side.

The Palestinian health ministry identified the dead as Muhamad Azizi, 25, who it said was killed by a bullet to the chest, and Abdul Rahman Jamal Suleiman Sobh, 28, who was shot in the head.

The Palestinian Red Crescent reported treating 19 wounded in Nablus, including 10 people hit by live fire.

Israel’s security forces have launched near-daily operations in the West Bank. The Jewish state has occupied the West Bank since 1967.

Israel’s Prime Minister Yair Lapid said those targeted in the overnight raid were linked to recent “shooting attacks” on Israelis, and he commended the security forces for an “efficient and successful operation.”

Nabil Abu Rudeina, a spokesman for Palestinian president Mahmud Abbas, called the raid an “Israeli crime.”

“The entire region will remain in a cycle of violence until the occupation is ended and a just peace is achieved,” he added in a statement to Voice of Palestine radio.

At least 52 Palestinians have been killed since late March, mostly in the West Bank, including Al Jazeera journalist Shireen Abu Akleh, a Palestinian-American dual national, who was covering an Israeli raid in Jenin.