Bullet holes in the walls and the name Hamas, what is Jenin camp and why is the Israeli army operating here?

The Palestinian Ministry of health says that at least 10 Palestinians have been killed and about 40 injured during a major Israeli army operation in the Jenin area of the occupied West Bank.

According to Palestinian media, several airstrikes took place on Tuesday as large number of military personnel entered the city and its refugee camp using drones helicopters and armored bulldozers.

The Israeli prime minister has said he launched a 'broad and significant' operation to defeat terrorism' in Jenin, long considered a stronghold of Palestinian armed groups.

This all happened three days after the start of a ceasefire in Gaza and has raised the risk of further violence in the West Bank, where suspected Israeli settlers also carried out violence on Monday night.

Israel has carried out several raids in Jenin over the past two years to prevent attacks by militants there. 

Where is the Jenin camp and how big is it?

This refugee camp is located inside the city of Jenin, in the north of the occupied West Bank.

It is an area of land on the West Bank of the Jordan River that Israel seized from Jordan in the 1967 Six-Day War.

Both Israel and Palestine claim the area. but its final status has been decided after decades of negotiations.

Since 1955, Jenin has been under the control of the Palestinian  Authority, which administers parts of the West Bank that are not under direct Israeli rule, although Israeli forces frequently enter the camp for security operations.

The camp consists of concrete buildings, the first of which were built in the 1970s.

According to the United Nations Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA), as of 2023 it had 24,239 registered refugees, but 14,000 people are believed to live in an area of less than half a square kilometer.

UNRWA says poverty and unemployment rates are very high in Jenin camp, especially among young people.

The report said that this results in widespread dissatisfaction and frustration, leading to an increase in school dropout rates among young children.

Sign of War

Years of violent clashes between the Israeli army and Palestinian armed groups have left their mark on the narrow streets of Jenin, with graffiti on the walls in the form of the name 'Hamas', bullet holes and M16 rifles.

In many places here , there are large piles of rubble left behind after military bulldozer operations.

Amid the destruction is a large hole in the center of the city, the main road is broken and inaccessible.

MKD News Officials