The Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) launched a large-scale military operation in the West Bank city of Jenin on Tuesday, killing 10 Palestinians, including a teenage boy, and injuring over 40, according to the Palestinian Health Ministry.
While the identities and affiliations of those killed are still being confirmed, eyewitness accounts suggest at least two victims were unarmed civilians.
Israel’s attack is part of the operation “Iron Wall,” launched just two days after the Gaza ceasefire went into effect. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu stated that the operation aims to eradicate terrorism in Jenin and strengthen security in the West Bank.
The operation involved airstrikes, ground forces, snipers, and armored vehicles, including bulldozers clearing paths through the city’s refugee camp. Videos showed heavy Israeli troop movements, while local witnesses reported ambulances being blocked from accessing some areas.
🚨🇵🇸🇮🇱#BREAKING:Israel launches “Operation Iron Wall” in Jenin, West Bank amid unprecedented escalation while PA withdraws.
Palestinian Ministry of Health: 4 martyrs and about 35 injured as a result of the occupation’s aggression on Jenin in the West Bank pic.twitter.com/8NKhAfsFoF
— Md.Sakib Ali (@iamsakibali1) January 21, 2025
Militant groups, including Islamic Jihad and Hamas, condemned the operation. Hamas called for “people in the West Bank and its revolutionary youth to mobilize and escalate the clash with the occupation army at all points of contact with it.”
“We call on our people throughout the occupied West Bank to confront this criminal campaign by all means, thwart its goals, and consolidate the enemy’s defeat in subduing the will of our people in the West Bank and Gaza,” the Islamic Jihad said in a statement.
The latest offensive follows a major military operation by Israel in the northern West Bank in August and September, known as “Operation Summer Camps.”
