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.

"On the directive of the Security Cabinet, the IDF, the ISA, and the Israel Police have today begun a...military operation to defeat terrorism in Jenin," Netanyahu said.

At least 10 people have been killed in the raids, and more than 40 wounded, according to the Palestinian Health Ministry. Dozens have been arrested, Palestinian officials told the Wafa news agency.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said the assault on Jenin would be “extensive and significant,” as the military erected new checkpoints across the West Bank.

The Israeli military killed two Palestinian fighters in the West Bank that it said had been involved in a deadly shooting of Israeli civilians as a major" anti-terror" operation in Jenin entered a third day.

The United States' new top diplomat Marco Rubio reaffirmed the country's "unwavering support" for Israel, days into a fragile ceasefire in the Gaza Strip and a large-scale raid in the occupied West Bank.

Palestinian health workers say an Israeli strike on a built-up refugee camp in the occupied West Bank has killed two people as a ceasefire in the Gaza Strip entered a third day.

Israeli forces have killed two Palestinian militants who carried out a deadly attack on a bus in the West Bank earlier this month

Israel's Operation Iron Wall targets Jenin resistance fighters, with direct coordination and complicity from the Palestinian Authority.

U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio spoke with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Wednesday to reiterate Washington's support for its ally, and the two also discussed Iran and Israeli hostages in Gaza, the State Department said.

Israel expands its campaign against militancy in the Palestinian territory after more than 15 months of deadly war in Gaza.