The Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) began a major operation Monday morning by sending in military troops and drones into a West Bank refugee camp in an effort to take out terrorist operatives, according to the IDF’s official social media account.
The operation has so far resulted in the death of eight Palestinians and injured several dozens of others, as the Israeli military used drones to drop explosives while hundreds of troops entered the town of Jenin, a known stronghold for multiple terrorist organizations and the location of over 10,0000 refugees, according to Reuters. The Israeli military dismissed accusations by Palestinians that it was simply striking civilian targets, arguing that the operation is aimed at taking out “terrorist infrastructures.” (RELATED: Two Palestinians Gun Down Four Israelis In The West Bank)
“Numerous sources have falsely accused the IDF of striking the Al-Huriya Theater located in Jenin,” the IDF wrote on Twitter. “To set the record straight: The IDF is ONLY operating against terrorist infrastructures.”
🔴FAKE
Numerous sources have falsely accused the IDF of striking the Al-Huriya Theater located in Jenin.
To set the record straight: The IDF is ONLY operating against terrorist infrastructures. pic.twitter.com/8sngSXYDHD
— Israel Defense Forces (@IDF) July 3, 2023
The Israeli military argued that the area is a safe haven for multiple terrorist organizations including the Islamic Jihad and Hamas, according to Reuters. The IDF released a video detailing the motives behind the operation on Twitter, explaining that the area had seen 56 shootings since the beginning of 2022, while terrorists in Jenin would attack innocent civilians and launch strikes against Israeli soldiers from the refugee camp.
A military spokesperson told Reuters that the operation would likely take longer than a day and another anonymous official said the Israeli military was “really stretched.”
“It’s because of the scale,” the spokesperson said. “And again, from our perception, this will minimize friction.”
Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas called Israel’s military offensive “a new war crime against our defenseless people,” a spokesperson told Reuters.
The refugee camp was established during Israel’s war for independence in 1948, and the Israeli military claimed that they had taken out a rocket launcher and destroyed a facility being used for weapon production, according to Reuters. One of the IDF drones was reportedly shot down by a militant group inside the town which has been a hot spot for escalating violence in recent months.
In June, two Palestinian gunmen drove into an Israeli settlement in the West Bank and shot up a restaurant and a gas station, killing four. Several days prior, the Israeli military intervened with helicopter gunships when a roadside bomb went off next to one of its military vehicles and militants engaged in a gunfight for several hours.
The last Israeli military operation of this scale in the area was in 2002 during the last Palestinian Intifada where over 50 Palestinian militants and civilians were killed along with 23 Israeli soldiers during the 10-day fighting period, according to the BBC.
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