West Bank: The most prominent camps in the West Bank attacked by the Israeli army – BBC News Arabic

Nadav Shoshani, a spokesman for the Israeli army, noted that around 150 shooting attacks and attacks with explosive devices have come from the West Bank over the past year.

The Israeli operation comes after a suicide bomb attack in Tel Aviv, which Hamas claimed responsibility for earlier this month. used in this attack in the North West Bank.

Israel’s Foreign Minister, Yisrael Katz, said on Wednesday, “The threat in the West Bank should be dealt with in the same way as the threat in the Gaza Strip.”

Ahmed Al-Deek, Palestinian Deputy Foreign Minister, told the Anadolu Agency, “Israel is reusing the same evacuation tactics in the West Bank that they used before in Gaza, in a way that forces – always escape.”

For their part, Palestinian armed groups vowed to confront Israeli forces and carry out counter-attacks.

According to the Palestinian Ministry of Health, at least 660 Palestinians have been killed in the West Bank, and around 5,400 others have been injured as a result of Israeli attacks, since October 7.

During the media coverage of this Israeli military operation, the names of several refugee camps in the West Bank appeared, including: Jenin, Nour Shams, Al-Fara’a and Balata.

What do we know about these camps?

The West Bank is home to around 775,000 refugees, a quarter of this number live in 19 camps, while the rest of the refugees live mostly in cities and towns. ‘ West Bank, according to the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA).

In its latest military operation, the Israeli army attacked the Jenin refugee camp and besieged two hospitals in the city, according to the Israel Broadcasting Authority. The army says it is trying to prevent militants from trapping themselves inside hospitals and turning them into battlegrounds.

Israeli forces imposed a curfew in Jenin. Local sources told the BBC that Israeli forces closed the roads leading to Jenin, amid intense fighting in the camp.

In the Jenin camp, the “Jenin Brigade” appeared related to the Islamic Jihad movement, and it is believed that it includes terrorists from several groups.

The camp is located within the city limits of Jenin, and is considered the most northerly camp among the West Bank camps. The camp was established in 1953.

In 2002, the Israeli army took possession of the Jenin camp after ten days of intense fighting, destroying more than 400 homes, and killing more than a quarter of the camp’s population, according to UNRWA.

According to a census conducted in 2021, there are approximately 12,250 Palestinian refugees living in the Jenin camp. The camp sees one of the highest levels of unemployment and poverty among refugee camps in the West Bank.

Many residents of the Jenin camp were previously dependent on work in Israel before the separation wall was built and the permit system was introduced.

In the Nour Shams refugee camp east of Tulkarm, the Israeli army on Wednesday ordered camp residents to leave within four hours, according to the official Palestinian news agency Wafa.

However, an Israeli army spokesman denied issuing such orders, but said that anyone who wants to leave should do so.

Palestinian health sources said that five Palestinians were killed on Monday night, following an attack on the Nour Shams camp.

The Nour Shams refugee camp is in the northwest of the West Bank, about three kilometers from the city of Tulkarm.

The camp was established in 1950, and approximately 7,350 Palestinian refugees live there, according to the 2021 census.

The Nour Shams camp sees high unemployment rates, as well as a decline in infrastructure, especially in the winter with rain, which causes damage and health risks for the camp’s residents.

In the Al-Far’a refugee camp, south of Tubas, two Palestinians were killed. The director of the Red Crescent Ambulance Department said that Israeli military forces are “preventing our teams from reaching the victims in the Al-Faraa camp.”

Near Ain Al-Fara’a, the Al-Fara’a camp is located about 17 kilometers northeast of Nablus.

The camp was established in 1949, and the residents of Al-Faraa camp come from around 30 villages in the north-eastern areas of the city of Jaffa.

There are approximately 7,600 registered Palestinian refugees living in Al-Far’a camp, and most of the camp’s residents work in the agricultural sector. The unemployment rate in the camp is around 22 per cent, and the population is also suffering from a lack of water.

In the Balata camp, east of the city of Nablus, Palestinian sources reported that Israeli military forces attacked the southern outskirts of the camp on Tuesday night, where clashes took place with Palestinian armed elements.

The Al-Quds Brigades announced in a statement that they were involved in a fierce conflict with Israeli forces that stormed the Balata camp.

In the Balata camp, the brigades “Lions’ Den” and “Balata” appeared.

Balata camp is the largest camp on the West Bank.

There are political and civil society activists in the Balata camp, and the Committee for the Protection of Refugee Rights was established in the Balata camp in 1994.

The unemployment rate in Balata camp is around 25 percent, according to UNRWA.