The sudden expansion of Israeli security operations in the West Bank has killed at least 10 people and follows the start of the delicate ceasefire process in Gaza, by which Israeli hostages are released in stages and will also see the gradual withdrawal of Israeli forces.

In the days since a fragile ceasefire took hold in the Gaza Strip, Israel has launched a major military operation in the occupied West Bank and suspected Jewish settlers have rampaged through two Palestinian towns.

The action came a day after President Donald Trump said he will lift sanctions on ultranationalist Israeli settlers who attacked Palestinian villages.

As Israel withdraws some of its troops from Gaza during a cease-fire there, it has turned attention to another Palestinian territory — in particular a city with a history of militant activity.

The announcement came shortly after President Trump rescinded Biden-era sanctions on Israeli settlers and Jewish extremists raided Palestinian villages in protest against the cease-fire in Gaza.

The United Nations secretary-general has warned that Israel might seize the opportunity to annex the occupied West Bank.

The Israel Defense Forces, IDF, announced Monday that it conducted a drone strike in the West Bank city of Tulkarem, killing Ihab Abu Atwi, the local head of Hamas, as part of its expanded military operation in the area.

The Israeli military and Hamas said Monday that an air strike killed two fighters from the Palestinian Islamist movement in the occupied West Bank city of Tulkarem. Israel has occupied the West Bank since 1967.