Israel’s war on the West Bank: Explainer
Israeli military armoured vehicles including a bulldozer block a road during a raid in the Far’a camp for Palestinian refugees near Tubas city in the occupied West Bank on 28 August 2024
Al Jazeera writes on 28 August 2024:
At least 10 Palestinians have been killed in a wide-ranging Israeli attack on the northern occupied West Bank, focused on the governorates of Tulkarem, Jenin and Tubas.
According to the Palestinian Red Crescent, four people were killed by Israeli forces in the Fara’a refugee camp in Tubas, three people in an Israeli drone attack on a vehicle in the village of Seir, near the city of Jenin, and two were killed in Jenin itself.
Another Palestinian was later reported to have been shot and killed in the village of Kafr Dan, west of Jenin, according to the Wafa news agency.
Jenin, with a population of about 39,000, is reported to have been entirely sealed off by Israeli forces. The governor of Jenin, Kamal Abu al-Rub, said that Israeli forces had cut off access to hospitals and other medical facilities in Jenin, and Israeli media outlets reported that Israeli soldiers had surrounded hospitals in Tulkarem and Tubas.
The Israeli military has described the assault, which began early on Wednesday, as the largest in the West Bank in two decades, and has released a joint statement with the Israeli police describing it as a “counterterrorism operation” targeting Palestinian fighters.
Israeli army assaults on West Bank refugee camps – Al Jazeera graphic
Let’s take a closer look.
How often do Israeli forces attack Palestinians in the occupied West Bank?
Israeli assaults in the West Bank have occurred on an almost daily basis since 2022, predating the current far-right Israeli government.
They target Palestinian cities, refugee camps and villages, and have killed hundreds. Between Israeli military raids and attacks by Israeli settlers, approximately 1,000 Palestinians have been killed since 2022 in the West Bank.
The military raids stem from Israel’s policy of dealing with the West Bank, which it has illegally occupied since 1967, through force rather than agreeing to the establishment of a Palestinian state. The focus is usually on ensuring that Palestinian resistance groups do not become strong enough to challenge Israel.