IDF soldier injured in shooting attack near Hebron

An IDF soldier was moderately injured after being shot during riots in Beit Ummar near Hebron early Wednesday morning.

The soldier received initial treatment at the scene and was transferred to a hospital for further treatment.

The IDF is searching the area for the shooter.

Violence spreads after al-Aqsa clashes

Additional attempted shooting attacks were reported across the West Bank on Wednesday morning, after violence spread in response to clashes that took place overnight at al-Aqsa mosque between Israeli police and Palestinians. 

Police entered al-Aqsa on Tuesday night, firing stun grenades and working to remove the people barricaded inside. Palestinians in the mosque fired fireworks and threw stones at the Israeli forces. Dozens of Palestinians were reportedly injured in the clashes, with Palestinian media claiming that medics were prevented from reaching the site.

The police stressed that dozens of young adults armed with sticks, stones and fireworks barricaded themselves in the mosque earlier in the evening in order to start a violent disturbance. The police added that they tried for hours to convince the young adults to exit the mosque peacefully, but were forced to forcefully enter the building after a continued refusal. One police officer was injured in the clashes.

Footage from the scene published by Palestinian media showed police officers hitting Palestinians in the building with chairs and batons and arresting many of them.

Palestinian Islamic Jihad movement Secretary-General Ziyad al-Nakhala warned against the clashes early Wednesday morning, saying "What is happening in the blessed Al-Aqsa Mosque constitutes a serious threat to our sanctities, and the Palestinian people must be present with all its components for the inevitable confrontation in the coming days."

The head of Hamas's political bureau, Ismail Haniyeh, warned that the clashes are "an unprecedented crime," calling on Palestinians to head to Jerusalem to clash with Israeli forces.