Israeli forces
have killed 70 people, including 10 children, in the occupied West Bank since
the start of the year, the Palestinian Ministry of Health says.
Mourners react during the funeral of Palestinians killed in an Israeli
raid, in Jenin, in the occupied West Bank, February 3 [Raneen
Sawafta/Reuters]
The Israeli
military launched a major offensive dubbed “Iron Wall” in the territory last
month, shortly after the ceasefire in Gaza. The operation is especially focused
on targeting Palestinian armed groups from the Jenin area.
The ministry
said that in addition to the 10 children killed, the Israeli military also
killed one woman and two elderly Palestinians.
On Monday, the
presidency of the Palestinian Authority (PA) condemned the Israeli attacks,
stressing that Palestinians would not accept resettlement plans or an
“alternative homeland”.
“The [Israeli]
occupation authorities are expanding their all-out war on the Palestinian
people in the West Bank to implement their plans aimed at displacing citizens
and carrying out ethnic cleansing,” spokesman Nabil Abu Rudeineh said in a
statement.
He added that
Israel’s policies have left hundreds of people wounded and or detained, “in
addition to the destruction of entire residential blocks in the Jenin and
Tulkarem refugee camps, the displacement of thousands of citizens, and massive
destruction of infrastructure”.
On Sunday,
Israeli forces destroyed 23 buildings in the Jenin refugee camp, in the ongoing
operation which has forcibly displaced some 15,000 Palestinians from the camp.
Meanwhile,
Israel’s attacks in the Tulkarem refugee camp have displaced 75 percent of
Palestinians from the area, Faisal Salama, head of the Popular Committee for
Services in the camp, told the Anadolu news agency.
Doctors Without
Borders, or MSF, on Monday condemned the Israeli attacks.
“Since the
ceasefire was implemented in Gaza, there has been an escalation of extreme
violence occurring across the West Bank, particularly in Jenin, Tulkarem and
Tubas. This is unacceptable,” the organisation said in a post on X.
It warned that
Israel’s blockade on Jenin caused by the ongoing operation is leading to a
shortage of “vital” supplies.
“We have been
supporting Jenin hospital with 10,000 litres of fuel and 800,000 litres of
water. We also provided hygiene kits, food distribution and mattresses for
Jenin and Tulkarem camps,” MSF said.
Still, Israel’s
offensive in the West Bank shows no signs of slowing down. On Monday, Israeli
soldiers deployed heavy armoured personnel carriers in raids in the occupied
territory, indicating a push to ramp up attacks.
The Israeli
escalation in the West Bank came after a ceasefire and prisoner exchange deal
took hold in Gaza on January 19, following 15 months of Israel’s genocidal war
that reduced the enclave to rubble and killed nearly 62,000 Palestinians,
including thousands who are missing and presumed dead.
Since the
beginning of Israel’s war on Gaza in October 2023, Israeli soldiers or settlers
have killed at least 882 Palestinians, according to the Palestinian Health
Ministry.
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