Israeli raid in West Bank refugee camp ends in violence

An Israeli raid to arrest armed group members in the West Bank turned into a gunbattle Monday night that left at least five Palestinians and an Israeli soldier wounded.

A Palestinian security official said Israeli forces on Monday night surrounded a house in Jenin refugee camp that belonged to Bassam Al-Saeedi, the Islamic Jihad armed group’s senior commander. Israeli military forces tried to arrest Saeedi, but could not find him.

Palestinian gunmen exchanged heavy fire with Israeli soldiers and five Palestinians were wounded with rubber bullets and taken to hospital, the security official told The Associated Press on condition of anonymity.

A Palestinian security official told Al Jazeera, also on condition of anonymity, that a local leader of Hamas, Majdi Abu al-Heija, and his brother were arrested in the raid.

Peter Lerner, the Israeli army spokesman, confirmed an "exchange of fire" but did not elaborate further. Israeli radio said that a member of an elite Israeli police unit had suffered moderate wounds during the clash and was being treated in hospital in the northern Israeli city of Haifa.

Israeli troops enter Palestinian-controlled territory frequently to detain suspected armed group members. The Palestinians condemn this practice as an encroachment on the limited self-rule they hold in parts of the West Bank.

Al Jazeera and wire services