An Israeli airstrike killed two Palestinian militants in the city of Tulkarm on Monday (Jan 27), Hamas said, underscoring Israel's renewed focus on armed groups in the occupied West Bank since the start of the ceasefire in Gaza.

A major Israeli military operation in the occupied West Bank killed at least nine Palestinians on Tuesday and left at least 40 more people wounded, Palestinian health officials said, as Israel’s fragile ceasefire with Hamas in Gaza entered its third day.

The sudden expansion of Israeli security operations in the West Bank has killed at least 10 people and follows the start of the delicate ceasefire process in Gaza, by which Israeli hostages are released in stages and will also see the gradual withdrawal of Israeli forces.

The violence comes as Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu faces domestic pressure from his far-right allies after agreeing to the truce and hostage-prisoner exchange with Hamas.

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.

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.