Six killed in Israeli strikes on Palestinian refugee camp in occupied West Bank

The attack took place at the Nur Shams refugee camp near the town of Tulkarem

Palestinians inspect a bullet riddled car after an Israeli army raid at Nur Shams refugee camp, near the West Bank town of Tulkarem. EPA

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Israeli air strikes on a Palestinian refugee camp in the occupied West Bank killed six people and wounded several others early on Wednesday, the Palestinian Ministry of Health said.

"Six martyrs killed by the occupation and some who were seriously wounded were transported to the Thabet Thabet government hospital in Tulkarem," the ministry said.

The official Palestinian news agency Wafa said the six people were killed by Israeli air strikes on the Nur Shams refugee camp near the northern town of Tulkarem, where Israeli soldiers were also deployed.

The Israeli army did not immediately respond to a request for comment on the operation.

Violence across the occupied West Bank has flared since Israel waged a war on Gaza following the Hamas group's attack on Israel on October 7.

More than 300 Palestinians in the West Bank have been killed by Israeli forces and settlers since the Gaza war erupted, the ministry said.

The number of detainees from the West Bank in Israeli prisons since October 7 has also risen sharply to 4,785, the Palestinian Commission of Prisoners and Ex-Prisoners Affairs said.

Israel's army chief has warned its war with Hamas will last "many more months" as the military stepped up strikes inside the Gaza Strip, where more than 20,000 people have already been reported killed.

Concerns over a spiralling humanitarian crisis inside the besieged territory have amplified calls for an end to the hostilities, while incidents linked to Iran-backed groups acting in solidarity with Hamas have fanned fears of a wider regional conflict.