Israel's offensive in West Bank intensifies as tanks move in. Here's the latest
Defence minister tells troops to prepare for 'extended stay' in Palestinian territory
Tensions are rising in the occupied West Bank after Israel sent more troops and, for the first time in more than two decades, tanks into the Palestinian territory.
Israel has demolished buildings and driven out tens of thousands of residents living in refugee camps — worrying Palestinians about the possibility of permanent displacement. Here is a look at where things stand in the region.
What happened this weekend?
Israel sent tanks into the West Bank on Sunday for the first time since 2002 — as Defence Minister Israel Katz announced an expansion of its military operations in the territory, which also saw troops sent into the refugee camps of Jenin, Tulkarem and Nur al-Shams.
Those camps — which were cleared out, Katz said — housed descendants of Palestinians who fled or were forced from their homes in the 1948 Arab-Israeli war around the birth of the state of Israel.
Katz told the troops to to prepare for an "extended stay," of at least a year and to "prevent the return of residents."
When did this operation start?
Israel's latest large-scale military operation in the West Bank began on Jan. 21 — two days after the Israel-Hamas ceasefire went into effect in Gaza.
The operation, which Israel dubs the "Iron Wall," began in Jenin, the northernmost city in the West Bank, before expanding to nearby cities and towns.
It has been one of the biggest operations since the Second Intifada uprising by Palestinians more than 20 years ago, involving several brigades of Israeli troops backed by drones, helicopters and heavy tanks.
Israeli military activity there increased after the Oct. 7, 2023, Hamas-led attacks on Israel, and again last month. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu ordered the military to step up operations last week after a series of explosions near Tel Aviv.
Over the past month, Israeli troops have reportedly demolished houses and vital infrastructure in the West Bank, including digging up roads and disrupting power and water supplies on Sunday.
Jenin and nearby city of Tulkarm in the northern West Bank were "emptied of residents," Katz said, with around 40,000 Palestinians having been displaced as a result of the military offensive — a figure confirmed by the United Nations.
How significant is this?
The West Bank, a kidney-shaped area around roughly 100 kilometres long seized by Israel in the 1967 Arab-Israeli war, is seen by Palestinians as the core of a future Palestinian state, along with Gaza.
John McGarry, political studies professor at Queen's University in Kingston, Ont., said Israel's move Sunday was a "negative and unfortunate development" for Palestinians in the refugee camps, who fear that this is a step toward potential annexation of the land.
McGarry says the escalation in the West Bank is the result of the right-wing Israeli government and a right-wing U.S. administration.
McGarry said while there is a "justifiable angst" in Israel following the Oct. 7 attacks, there are "right-wingers in the Israeli government who are taking advantage of those concerns."
What have Palestinians said?
Palestinians are concerned this is part of a wider plan to destroy their homes and permanently displace them.
"Israel wants to erase the camps and the memory of the camps, morally and financially, they want to erase the name of refugees from the memory of the people," said Jenin resident Hassan al-Katib, 85.
Basheer Matahen, spokesperson for the Jenin municipality, said Israel's operation there is a repeat of what took place during the Israel-Hamas hostilities in Jabalia, a refugee camp in northern Gaza that has become "uninhabitable."
Israel has said it intended to root out Iranian-backed militant groups including Hamas and Islamic Jihad, denying that its operation had a wider purpose.
What are other reactions?
UN Secretary General António Guterres said Monday he's "gravely concerned" by the rise of violence in the West Bank.
The Palestinian Ministry of Foreign Affairs called Israel's move a "dangerous escalation" and, in a statement on Sunday, urged the international community to intervene in the illegal "aggression."
Nabil Abu Rudeineh, a spokesperson for Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, condemned the decision to deploy tanks.
"This is a dangerous Israeli escalation that will not lead to stability or calm," he said on Sunday.
Hamas, meanwhile, said sending tanks showed the threats faced by Israeli troops from militant fighters in the camps.
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With files from Reuters and The Associated Press