The Israeli assault on the northern occupied West Bank has forcibly displaced 30,000 Palestinians from their homes in the past two weeks, local officials and media reports say.
Jenin Deputy Governor Mansour al-Saad in remarks on Sunday confirmed that over 20,000 people from the city’s refugee camp had been displaced since the launch of the Israeli offensive 17 days ago.
“The [Israeli] occupation has entirely destroyed the Jenin refugee camp and forcibly displaced more than 20,000 residents, leaving behind their homes, documents, and personal belongings,” Jenin Deputy Governor Mansour al-Saadi told Voice of Palestine radio.
The Israeli attacks and destruction are “a conspiracy against the refugee issue aimed at erasing it entirely,” Saadi said.
The displaced residents are expected to seek shelter in other cities across the occupied West Bank, as destruction caused by the Israeli assault makes their return impossible.
At least 10,500 Palestinians have been forcibly displaced from the Tulkarem refugee camp, either under threat of violence or coercion, as confirmed by the city’s governor, Abdullah Kmeil.
The Israeli assault on Tulkarm has entered its 14th consecutive day, causing widespread destruction to infrastructure and forcing residents to flee their homes.
The governor of Tubas and the northern Jordan Valley, Ahmad al-As’ad said that the Israeli aggression had forced 4,000 Palestinians to leave the town of Tammun.
Israeli forces recently deployed large military reinforcements, including heavy machinery and bulldozers, into the Nur Shams camp.
The army also carried out raids on dozens of homes, accompanied by intense live fire, loud explosions, and low-flying surveillance drones.
The military escalation has resulted in widespread destruction of infrastructure and imposed a suffocating siege that forced residents to leave their homes amid harsh humanitarian conditions in the area.
Since the start of the year, the ongoing Israeli crackdown in the northern West Bank governorates has killed dozens of Palestinians and destroyed hundreds of homes, forcing thousands to flee for their lives.