Israeli forces arrest 2 Palestinians in West Bank

Israeli forces on Sunday arrested two Palestinians during their pre-dawn military raids in West Bank, Palestinian sources said.

The two men were arrested from Beit Ummar town near Hebron city, south of the West Bank, after Israeli forces stormed the town and searched homes of residents, Xinhua news agency reported.

Meanwhile, the Palestinian Prisoners Society (PPS), which is a quasi-governmental body that provides legal aid to Palestinian prisoners, said that Mwafaq Arouq, a 77-year-old prisoner, who was diagnosed with cancer in July last year, was rushed to hospital after a serious deterioration on Sunday morning.

Arouq is a Palestinian resident of Israel. He is serving a 30-year sentence and has been imprisoned since 2003.

The PPS accused Israel of stalling time before providing the inmate with proper medical care, holding the Israeli prison authorities responsible for his life.

PPS Spokesperson Amani Sarahneh told Xinhua that 67 Palestinian prisoners have died while in Israel's custody since 1967, and five of whom died in 2019.

At least 200 other prisoners are suffering serious or chronic diseases, added Sarahneh, warning that they are not receiving proper medical treatment.

Official Palestinian statistics say there are over 5,000 Palestinians in Israeli jails, including around 40 women.