Jerusalem   -  Israel’s army said Wednesday its forces killed nine Palestinian militants during an ongoing operation in the occupied West Bank, which was launched overnight.

The Israeli forces “began a counterterrorism operation in Jenin and Tulkarem” overnight, the army said in a statement. It specified that three “terrorists” were killed “in an aerial strike” in Jenin, two others “eliminated” in Jenin and Tulkarem and four more “eliminated” in “an aerial counterterrorism operation in the area of Faraa” in the Jordan Valley.

“At the moment, there are no injured soldiers on our side,” military spokesman Nadav Shoshani told reporters.

“We have met explosives already in the first hours, and we have met real-time fire exchanged with terrorists engaging in battle.”

He declined to say how long the operation would last or how many troops were involved.

It was targeting “a mixture of terror groups and terror cells”, Shoshani said.

In Jenin, Israeli forces “apprehended five wanted suspects and located and confiscated weapons” including rifle parts and ammunition, he said.

“Additionally, the forces exposed and dismantled explosives that were planted under the roads in the area and were intended to be detonated in attacks against the security forces operating in the area,” he said.

The Palestinian Red Crescent Society said at least 10 were killed in the operation which involved air strikes, ground forces and bulldozers.

The operation was triggered by “a significant rise in terrorist activity in the past year” emanating from the targeted areas, Shoshani said.

This included “over 150 shooting and explosive attacks... from these areas alone”, he said.