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The crossing, in the Jordan Valley, is the only international gateway for Palestinians from the West Bank that does not require entering the Zionist entity, which has occupied the territory since 1967.

Violence in the West Bank has surged alongside the war in Gaza. The Zionist military on Aug 28 launched simultaneous raids across several cities and refugee camps in the northern West Bank, killing at least 36 Palestinians, according to the Ramallah-based Palestinian health ministry. Since Oct 7, Zionist troops or settlers have killed at least 662 Palestinians in the West Bank, according to the Palestinian health ministry.

The Zionist offensive in Gaza has so far killed at least 40,972 people, mostly women and children. On Sunday, the Zionist entity pounded Gaza with air strikes and shelling as prospects remained dim for a ceasefire. Gaza’s civil defense agency said nearly a dozen people were killed in Zionist air strikes on Sunday, including five in Jabalia refugee camp.

There has been no respite for the 2.4 million Palestinians living in Gaza, almost all of whom have been displaced at least once. “Moving from one area to another is distressing because there is no safe place in Gaza,” said Raeed Hamad, 51, a cancer patient from the southern city of Khan Yunis. “We are displaced under heavy bombardments... I have lost weight and I’m exhausted.”

Hamas is demanding a complete Zionist withdrawal from Gaza as part of a ceasefire deal, but the Zionist entity insists troops must remain along the Gaza-Egypt border. The United States, Qatar and Egypt have all been mediating in efforts to forge a ceasefire. Zionist protesters numbering in the tens of thousands have mounted pressure on the government, demanding a deal that would mean the release of captives.

International pressure to end the war has also intensified after Friday’s fatal shooting in the West Bank of Turkish-American activist Aysenur Ezgi Eygi, who was demonstrating against Zionist settlements in the territory. Her family, Turkey and the UN rights office all said Zionist forces killed her. — AFP