Some Israeli military forces seem to have withdrawn from certain areas of the West Bank following a military operation in the area over the past several days.
On Thursday, a reporter for The Associated Press said that Israeli forces were seen leaving a refugee camp in Jenin and by Friday morning, no other Israeli troops were inside the refugee camps.
Last month, Israeli military officials announced that they carried out a raid in the West Bank, specifically Jenin, which is widely seen as a militia stronghold during the ongoing war, as well as the city of Tulkarem and the Al-Faraa refugee camp.
Israeli military officials stated that the operation targeted militants in Jenin, Tulkarem, and the Al-Faraa refugee camps in an effort to curb what they described as increasingly sophisticated and deadly attacks on Israeli civilians.
Israeli military spokesperson Lt. Col. Nadav Shoshani previously said that “large forces” carried out the raid, noting that nine individuals, who were identified as militants, died. Five other suspected militants were arrested following the raid in the West Bank, Shoshani said, who also noted that the recent operation is part of a larger scale effort to prevent attacks against Israelis.
Israeli troops left the Tulkarem camp as of Friday morning, as well as the Al-Faraa area, but a statement from the Israeli military appeared to suggest that their operations in the area were not done.
“Israeli security forces are continuing to act in order to achieve the objectives of the counterterrorism operation,” the military said in a statement.
A woman walks near a damaged building following an Israeli military raid in the Jenin refugee camp, in the occupied West Bank on Sept. 6, 2024. As of Sept. 6, 2024, Israeli forces appeared to have left portions of the West Bank, including Jenin.
RONALDO SCHEMIDT/AFP via Getty Images/Getty Images
Hundreds of Israeli troops have been engaged for over a week in their deadliest operation in the occupied West Bank since the Israel-Hamas war began, using what the United Nations has described as “lethal, warlike tactics.”
The primary target has been the Jenin refugee camp, a stronghold of Palestinian militancy that has expanded since the Hamas attack on Israel, which triggered the Gaza war nearly 11 months ago.
Fighting in Jenin has resulted in 21 of the 39 Palestinian deaths reported by local health officials during Israel’s offensive in the West Bank, with the military stating that most of those killed were militants.
The war in Gaza erupted on Oct. 7, when Hamas and other militant groups launched a surprise attack on Israel, killing approximately 1,200 people, mostly civilians. Hamas is believed to still be holding more than 100 hostages, with Israeli authorities estimating that about a third of them have been killed.
Israel’s retaliatory offensive has resulted in over 40,000 Palestinian deaths, according to the Health Ministry in Hamas-controlled Gaza, which does not differentiate between civilians and combatants in its reporting. The ministry also states that more than 94,000 people have been wounded since the conflict began.
This article includes reporting from The Associated Press
