Following the eviction of tens of thousands of Palestinians, Israel announced on Sunday that troops will remain in West Bank refugee camps for the upcoming year and that it would intensify its military activities, including the deployment of tanks.
A month ago, just after a ceasefire was established in the Gaza Strip, another Palestinian enclave, the military launched a significant raid against Palestinian militants in the West Bank.
Several refugee camps close to the cities of Jenin, Tulkarem, and Tubas are part of the Israeli operation in the West Bank.
“So far, 40,000 Palestinians have evacuated from the refugee camps of Jenin, Tulkarem, and Nur Shams, which are now empty of residents,” Defence Minister Israel Katz said in a statement.
“I have 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,” he added.
The Israeli offensive has killed at least 51 Palestinians, including seven children, and three Israeli soldiers so far, according to the UN. At least 40,000 people have also been displaced.
“A tank division will operate in Jenin” as part of “expanding” operations in the region, Israel’s military announced on Sunday. Tanks are being used in the area for the first time since the second intifada, or uprising, ended in 2005.
“The Nahal (infantry) Brigade and (elite) Duvdevan Unit forces have begun to intervene in other villages” in the north of the territory, Katz’s statement said, adding that the forces “are continuing their operations in the Jenin and Tulkarem regions.”
The statement comes two days after Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, during a rare visit to troops in the territory, ordered the army to step up its operations in the West Bank, which Israel has occupied since 1967.
His visit to Tulkarem refugee camp drew Palestinian condemnation.
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