Israel kills militants in the West Bank as a nervous region watches talks in Cairo

ZEITA, West Bank (AP) — Two Israeli airstrikes in the West Bank killed nine Palestinian militants on Saturday, Israel’s army said, as violence flared again in the Israeli-occupied territory with tensions high over the war in Gaza and a potential regional escalation.

Cease-fire discussions on Gaza were set to continue, with an Israeli delegation led by the Mossad chief arriving in Cairo, an Egyptian official said. The U.S. has urged Israel to seize the chance for a cease-fire after the shock killing of Hamas’ political leader in Iran, which Tehran blames on Israel.

That killing and Israel’s assassination of a Hezbollah commander in Lebanon have the region holding its breath for retaliation against Israel on either front, or both, after Iran and its proxies vowed to act. Calls for people to leave Lebanon sharpened as flight activity there cooled.

In the northern West Bank, the Israeli army said its forces first struck a vehicle in a rural area outside the city of Tulkarem early morning, killing the five occupants. The army said they were on their way to carry out an attack. Hamas identified all five as militants with the group, including a local commander.

According to an Associated Press journalist and witnesses, the blast took place along a road connecting the Palestinian villages of Zeita and Qaffin.

“We came to the site and found a young man martyred here on the street and half of his face was missing.,” said Taiser Abdullah, a Zeita resident. The official Palestinian news agency Wafa said four bodies were “burned and charred beyond recognition.”

Later Saturday, Israel’s military said it killed four other Palestinian militants in the Tulkarem area shortly after they opened fire on Israeli troops. No further information was immediately available.

Over 590 Palestinians have been killed by Israeli fire in the West Bank since the Israel-Hamas war began in Gaza in October, according to the Palestinian Health Ministry. Most have been killed during Israeli raids and violent protests. Tulkarem is regularly raided by Israeli forces, and Palestinian militant groups, including Hamas and Palestinian Islamic Jihad, are active there.

Concerns about a full-fledged regional war are high after the assassinations of Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh in Tehran early Wednesday and top Hezbollah commander Fouad Shukur in Beirut the evening before.

Iran and its proxies, including Hezbollah in Lebanon, vowed to retaliate against Israel, which said it killed Shukur but has not confirmed or denied its role in Haniyeh’s death. Iran’s Revolutionary Guard said a short-range projectile was behind the killing and accused the United States of supporting the attack.

The Pentagon said late Friday that the U.S. military will move a fighter jet squadron to the Middle East and maintain an aircraft carrier in the region. The U.S. Embassy in Lebanon encouraged citizens who wish to leave to “book any ticket available,” noting that several airlines have suspended or canceled flights. The British government called on its citizens in Lebanon to “leave now.”

President Joe Biden on Thursday said he had urged Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to seize the chance for a cease-fire with Hamas, adding that Haniyeh’s killing had “not helped” efforts to negotiate an end to the war. Netanyahu has vowed to destroy Hamas’ military and governing capabilities.

Saturday midday, an Israeli delegation led by Mossad chief David Barnea arrived in Cairo, an Egyptian official said. The delegation, which also includes Ronan Bar, chief of Israel’s internal security agency Shin Bet, will meet with Abbas Kamel, head of Egypt’s General Intelligence Service, for talks focusing on the Philadelphi corridor along the border with Egypt and the Rafah crossing point, the official said.

The Egyptian official, who has direct knowledge of the Gaza cease-fire negotiations, spoke on condition of anonymity because he wasn’t authorized to brief reporters.

There was no immediate comment from Israeli officials. Netanyahu’s office late Friday said he ordered the negotiation delegation to leave for Cairo on Saturday or Sunday.

The death toll inside Gaza is nearing 40,000. At least 39,550 Palestinians have been killed in the nearly 10 months since Hamas’ brutal Oct. 7 attack on Israel triggered their latest war. That’s according to Gaza’s Health Ministry, which does not differentiate between civilians and combatants in its count. Israel has accused Hamas of embedding in the civilian population and putting it at risk.

Most of Gaza’s population of about 2.3 million is displaced, many people multiple times, as Israel’s military returns to areas where it says Hamas militants have regrouped. Health services and sanitation have largely collapsed across the territory as hunger grows.

Protests in support of Palestinians and a cease-fire occurred in France, Britain and elsewhere.

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Jeffery reported from Ramallah, West Bank. Associated Press writers Samy Magdy in Cairo; Tia Goldenberg in Tel Aviv, Israel; and Bassem Mroue in Beirut contributed.

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