Dozens of people were killed or wounded after an outbreak of violence in the West Bank that Israeli military officials called a counterterrorism operation.

Israel’s defense minister has announced a series of raids that he says are targeting “terrorism” in the occupied West Bank, as Palestinian officials warned of a “man-made disaster.”

The Israeli military killed at least seven Palestinians in the occupied West Bank on Tuesday as the prime minister announced the start of a “large-scale military operation” in the restive city of Jenin.

Israel launched a large military operation in the occupied West Bank city of Jenin on Tuesday that the Palestinian Health Ministry said had killed at least six people and wounded 35.

Truce comes after rupture said caused by IDF's resumption of airstrikes in area; members of battalion, affiliated with terror groups, to surrender arms to Ramallah after 6-week op

U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio spoke with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Wednesday to reiterate Washington's support for its ally, and the two also discussed Iran and Israeli hostages in Gaza, the State Department said.

Hamas, based in Gaza, has over recent years expanded its reach in the West Bank, where the Palestinian Authority, dominated by the rival Fatah faction, exercises limited governance. On Tuesday, Hamas called on Palestinians in the territory to escalate fighting against Israel.

The men were affiliated with a militant group, Palestinian Islamic Jihad, which carried out an attack earlier this month, the military said.

Israel has freed 90 Palestinian detainees in exchange for three Israeli hostages as the first stage of its ceasefire deal with Hamas.

The Israeli military said Thursday it killed two Palestinian militants overnight near the occupied West Bank city of Jenin, where a large-scale raid is underway, accusing them of murdering three Israelis.