Three Palestinian women were killed in an Iranian missile attack in the West Bank late on Wednesday (18 March), the Palestinian Red Crescent said, in the first Iranian strike there, and the first to kill Palestinians, since the start of the U.S.- Israel war with Iran.
The missile struck a hair salon in the town of Beit Awwa, southwest of Hebron, the Palestinian Authority's official news agency WAFA reported. Thirteen were wounded, one of them seriously.
The Israeli military said it understood the strike was caused by a cluster munition, a warhead that splits into tiny bomblets that scatter into a disparate area.
At least 15 people have been killed in Israel since the start of the U.S.- Israel war with Iran on 28 February.
Iran has been shooting missiles daily towards Israel, and there have been no reports of it deliberately targeting Israeli-occupied Palestinian territories.
Most Israelis have access to bomb shelters that protect them from cluster munitions and falling debris, but virtually no such shelters exist for Palestinians in the West Bank.
Many Palestinians rely on either the sound of sirens from Jewish settlements or neighbouring cities in Israel to alert them to rocket volleys.
The streets in the West Bank have been packed in recent days as many Palestinian families purchase sweets and presents in anticipation of the Eid al-Fitr holiday marking the end of Ramadan.
The United Nations considers the West Bank, including East Jerusalem, "occupied territory" because it was captured and brought under Israeli military control during the 1967 Six-Day War.
The West Bank is also subject to the fourth Geneva Convention which governs the treatment of civilians in occupied terriroties.
The UN Security Council states that the establishment of Israeli settlers in the West Bank is a "flagrant violation of international law" and has no legal validity.
Israel strongly disputes these claims.
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