Eleven Palestinians were killed on Wednesday in clashes with Israeli soldiers in the northern West Bank city of Nablus, according to the Palestinian Health Ministry.

In addition, more than 100 Palestinians were injured by Israeli soldiers during the four-hour clash, with seven of them in critical condition.

The Israeli military said in a statement that the raid aimed to arrest suspects for the killing of a soldier near an Israeli settlement last year, adding no injuries were reported among its soldiers.

Nablus and nearby Jenin have been a focus of raids that Israel has intensified over the last year following a spate of lethal Palestinian street attacks in its cities.

Palestine has condemned the Israeli deadly aggression against Nablus, with Nabil Abu Rudeineh, a spokesman for the Palestinian presidency, vowing to hold the Israeli government "responsible for this dangerous escalation, which is pushing the region toward tension and an explosive situation."

He called on the U.S. administration "to take immediate action and put effective pressure on the Israeli government to stop its crimes and continuous aggression against our people."

U.S. State Department spokesman Ned Price said at a regular press briefing that Washington recognized Israel's security concerns but was deeply concerned by the large number of injuries and loss of civilian life.

The raid came after Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's office on Monday said it would not authorize new settlements in the occupied West Bank as part of an agreement that helped avoid stronger criticism at the U.N. Security Council over a move to authorize settler outposts.

The Security Council ultimately issued a formal statement, not a stronger draft resolution earlier proposed by the United Arab Emirates, after the United States said the resolution would be "unhelpful."

(Cover: Israeli forces take security measures during protests by Palestinians against an Israeli crackdown at Issawiya neighbourhood in East Jerusalem, February 19, 2023. /CFP)

(With input from Xinhua, Reuters)