Palestinian Authority security forces have battled Islamist fighters in Jenin for days, as they wrestle to exert control of one of the historic centres of militancy in the West Bank ahead of a likely shakeout in Palestinian politics after the Gaza war.

Palestinian officials said Israeli forces killed six people in the occupied West Bank on Thursday, while the Israeli military confirmed it killed four militants in an air strike. The health ministry in Ramallah said four Palestinians were killed and three were wounded “as a result of the (Israeli) bombing of a vehicle in Tulkarem camp”,

In the past week, the Palestinian Authority has made its most intense show of force in years. Its security forces have surrounded and are attacking the occupied West Bank city of Jenin and its refugee camp,

Palestinian security forces have launched a rare crackdown against local militant groups in the northern West Bank, sending in armored cars and engaging in fierce gunbattles that have killed at least two people in the volatile area.

Hamas called on "all movements, factions, tribal gatherings, and human rights organizations to mobilize massively" to repel the ongoing operation carried out by Palestinian Authority security forces in the West Bank city of Jenin in an official statement on Tuesday.