Israel has launched a major new offensive in the occupied West Bank, targeting at least four towns in what security forces are calling a “counter-terror operation to combat terror.”
At least 11 Palestinians have been killed, including five in an airstrike on the al-Fara refugee camp and six in a drone attack and armed clashes in Jenin, local health officials said.
According to Palestinian reports, the main roads to Jenin have been closed, while Tulkarm, Nablus and Tubas have also been targeted.
Israel has been carrying out near-daily attacks on the West Bank since the October 7 Hamas attacks that sparked the war in Gaza. However, this is likely the most large-scale and coordinated operation of its kind in years.
Palestinian militant groups said they had exchanged fire with the Israeli army, entered a hospital and stormed several refugee camps.
This comes after Israel and the Lebanese militant group Hezbollah carried out hundreds of attacks on each other’s territory on Sunday. largest exchange of fire between the two sides since the new conflict broke out after Hamas attacks on October 7.
Israeli military vehicles drive on a road during a raid in the northern occupied West Bank town of Tulkarm
An Israeli soldier is seen near armored vehicles during a raid on the Nur Shams refugee camp
Israeli soldiers operate during a raid on the Nur Shams camp for Palestinian refugees near the town of Tulkarem in the Israeli-occupied West Bank
Palestinians assess the damage to a car during a military operation by Israeli forces near Jenin in the Israeli-occupied West Bank
The Israeli military confirmed today that it is active in the West Bank cities of Jenin and Tulkarem, but gave no further details.
Foreign Minister Israel Katz said the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) “have been operating with all its might in the Jenin and Tulkarm refugee camps since last night to dismantle the Iranian-Islamic terror infrastructure there.”
Jenin Governor Kamal Abu al-Rub reported on Palestinian radio that Israeli forces had surrounded the city, blocked all entrances and exits and access to hospitals, and destroyed infrastructure in the camp.
An Israeli airstrike at dawn is reported to have hit a vehicle in a village near Jenin. Photos show people inspecting a car with its windows smashed.
At least 652 Palestinians in the West Bank have been killed by Israeli fire since the Gaza war began more than 10 months ago, the Palestinian Health Ministry said. Most have died during such raids, which often provoke gun battles with militants.
Israel says the operations are necessary to dismantle Hamas and other terrorist groups and to prevent attacks on Israelis, which have also increased since the war began.
The Palestinian Health Ministry said the bodies of seven people were taken to a hospital in Tubas, another West Bank city, and two more to a hospital in Jenin. The ministry identified two of the dead in Jenin as Qassam Jabarin, 25, and Asem Balout, 39.
Israel captured the West Bank, Gaza and East Jerusalem in the 1967 Middle East war. The Palestinians want all three for a future state.
Israeli soldiers walk through a street during a raid on the al-Faraa camp near the town of Tubas
Israel has built dozens of settlements in the West Bank, which are home to more than 500,000 Jewish settlers.
They have Israeli nationality, while the three million Palestinians in the West Bank live under Israeli military rule, with the Palestinian Authority exercising only limited control over population centers.
The war in Gaza broke out on October 7, when Hamas-led terrorists invaded southern Israel and attacked army bases and farming communities, killing about 1,200 people, mostly civilians, and abducting about 250.
The militants still hold about 110 hostages, about a third of whom are believed to be dead after most of the rest were released during a ceasefire in November.
An Israeli military vehicle drives on a road during a raid in the northern town of Tulkarm in the occupied West Bank on August 28, 2024
Israel responded with an offensive that killed more than 40,000 Palestinians, according to Gaza’s Health Ministry, which did not say how many were militants.
About 90 percent of Gaza’s population has been displaced, often multiple times, and Israeli bombardments and ground operations have caused massive destruction.
At least 16 people, including five women and three children, were killed in Israeli attacks in Gaza overnight and on Wednesday.
Most of the attacks occurred in or near the southern city of Khan Younis, which has been heavily bombarded in the past two months. Associated Press reporters at two hospitals confirmed the toll.
The United States, Qatar and Egypt have been trying for months to mediate a ceasefire that would release the remaining hostages.
But the talks repeatedly stalled as Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu promised “total victory” over Hamas and demanded a lasting ceasefire and a complete withdrawal from the area.
After days of talks in Egypt, there is still no breakthrough. This week, the negotiations will be moved to Qatar.