JENIN: Israel said on Sunday its forces would remain for many months in refugee camps in the occupied West Bank, after tens of thousands of Palestinians living there have been displaced by an intensifying military operation.
The military began a major raid against Palestinian militants in the West Bank’s north a month ago, just after a truce went into effect in the Gaza Strip, a separate Palestinian territory.
The West Bank offensive has gradually expanded, spanning multiple refugee camps near the cities of Jenin, Tulkarem and Tubas.
Three of the camps, Jenin, Tulkarem and Nur Shams, “are now empty of residents,” Defense Minister Israel Katz said in a statement.
He put the number of displaced Palestinians at 40,000, the same figure provided by the United Nations which said the offensive has so far killed at least 51 Palestinians including seven children, and three Israeli soldiers.
Katz said he had instructed troops “to prepare for a prolonged presence in the cleared camps for the coming year and to prevent the return of residents and the resurgence of terrorism.”
Also on Sunday, Israel’s military announced tank deployments in Jenin, where it was “expanding” operations.
This is the first time tanks have operated in the West Bank since the end of the second Palestinian intifada, or uprising, in 2005.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, speaking at a military ceremony on Sunday, said the deployment showed that “we are fighting terror with all means, everywhere.”
Michael Horowitz, head of intelligence at security and risk management consultancy Le Beck International, told AFP there was “no real military logic to using tanks in the West Bank at this stage.”
“Unless it is to send a message, and potentially to stay more permanently in areas that have been targeted by Israeli raids,” he added.
AFPTV footage showed Israeli tanks advancing and bulldozers operating in the Jenin area on Sunday.
“The occupation’s army destroyed Palestinian shops and infrastructure,” said Jenin resident Fayez Al-Sayyed.
“This is a way to execute their policy of displacing the Palestinian people from their land,” he told AFP.
“We are here, and we will not leave our country," he added.
Analyst Horowitz said “the Israeli government has been devoting a lot more attention to the West Bank” since a shaky ceasefire deal with Hamas group took hold in Gaza on January 19.
In both Tulkarem and Jenin, the Israeli army has demolished dozens of homes with explosives, opening up new access routes into the densely built camps.
Armored bulldozers have wreaked havoc, upturning tarmac, cutting water pipes, and tearing down roadside facades.
Violence in the West Bank has surged since the war in Gaza broke out in October 2023.
Israeli troops or settlers have killed at least 900 Palestinians, including many militants, in the territory since the start of the Gaza war, according to the Palestinian health ministry.
At least 32 Israelis have been killed in Palestinian attacks or during Israeli military operations in the territory over the same period, according to Israeli official figures.