Three Palestinian men from the terrorist group Hamas were killed by Israeli military in the West Bank on Thursday. The three were suspected of the terrorist murder of a woman and her two daughters.

The Israeli soldiers moved into the centre of Nablus’ old city while the city was coming to life. The military raid targeted the house where the three men were staying, and all three were killed in what the military says was a shootout.

NTB-Reuters-AFP reports on the case.

The Israeli authorities accuse all three of being behind the attack on a car in the Jordan Valley in the West Bank on 7 April. British-Israeli Lucy Dee and her two daughters aged 20 and 16 were killed. The three lived in an Israeli settlement nearby.

In Nablus, the house where the three Palestinians were was completely destroyed by shells fired through the roof of the building. The city is the second largest in the West Bank and in the past year has been subjected to several military operations in which the Israelis are hunting terrorists.

Hamas admits involvement

In a statement, Hamas identified the three men killed and confirmed that all were members of the group. Hamas claims responsibility for the attack on Dee and her daughters.

Woman attacked with a knife and was was shot

In another incident on Thursday, a 26-year-old Palestinian woman was shot dead by a 20-year-old Israeli soldier after she attacked him with a knife, causing minor injuries, according to the Israeli military. The woman was killed near the town of Hawara south of Nablus.

For almost a year, Israel has carried out military operations against Palestinian villages and towns almost every night. The escalation came after several Israeli civilians were killed by Palestinians in Israeli cities.