Palestinian health authorities said an Israeli airstrike in the northern West Bank killed at least 10 people late Wednesday. Israel’s use of a jet fighter to strike the rural village of Tamoun late Wednesday marked the latest escalation in its intensifying crackdown on Palestinian militants in the occupied territory.

The Palestinian health ministry said an Israeli drone strike in a village in the occupied West Bank killed at least 10 people on Wednesday, while the military said it had struck an "armed cell".

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 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.

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 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.