Pair shot after appearing to surrender in West Bank

In the footage, the men are seen exiting a building surrounded by armed Israeli forces in the northern West Bank city of Jenin, lifting their shirts and lying on the ground in an apparent surrender. 

The forces then appeared to direct the men back inside the building before opening fire at close range.

A Reuters journalist in the vicinity saw the men leave the building, appearing to surrender, and later, after hearing shots fired, saw Israeli forces standing near what appeared to be a lifeless body.

The Palestinian health ministry said in a statement the two men were killed in the shooting, identifying them as 26-year-old Montasir Abdullah and 37-year-old Yusuf Asasa.

The Israeli military and Israel Police issued a joint statement announcing they had opened an investigation after forces opened fire towards suspects who had exited a building.

Jenin Governor Kamal Abu al-Rub, speaking by phone, accused Israeli forces of carrying out a "cold-blooded execution" of two young men who he said were unarmed and had surrendered.

He said those who opened fire should face accountability, but expressed doubt that Israeli authorities would conduct a genuine investigation.

Israeli forces had been carrying out an operation in the Jenin area to apprehend individuals wanted for "terror activities, including hurling explosives and firing at security forces", the Israeli military and police said in the joint statement.

The two men who were shot on Thursday were wanted individuals who were affiliated with a "terror network in the area of Jenin", the statement said. 

According to the military and police, security forces had surrounded the building where the men were located before initiating a "surrender procedure" that lasted several hours.

"Following their exit, fire was directed toward the suspects," the statement said, adding the shooting was "under review by the commanders on the ground, and will be transferred to the relevant professional bodies".

Israel's far-right National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir later issued a statement giving his "full backing" to the military and the police unit that was involved in the shooting.

"The fighters acted exactly as expected of them - terrorists should die!," he wrote on social media platform X.

The Jenin raid marks the latest assault in a months-long Israeli campaign across northern West Bank cities. Israeli forces on Wednesday launched an operation on the nearby city of Tubas.

Palestinian militant group Hamas, which agreed to a ceasefire with Israel in Gaza in October, condemned the killing of the men in Jenin as an "execution" and urged the international community to intervene to stop what it called Israel's "escalating field executions".

The group did not claim the two men as members. 

Meanwhile Israel's air force carried out another series of strikes in parts of southern Lebanon on Thursday. 

The military said it struck and dismantled Hezbollah infrastructure, including launch sites storing Hezbollah weapons.

On Thursday, Lebanese Prime Minister Nawaf Salam criticised Hezbollah for not settling down arms in a rare rebuke of the group, saying the Iran-backed militants have failed to deter Israeli airstrikes, protect the Lebanese people or even safeguard the lives of its own leaders.

Pope Leo XIV is scheduled to visit the country on Sunday, when he will meet the crisis-hit nation's political and religious leaders.

With AP

Australian Associated Press