It is Israel's largest military operation in the West Bank in more than 20 years since its Operation Defensive Shield in 2002,[30] and is a significant escalation of the continual Israeli incursions into the region against Palestinian militants during the ongoing Israel–Hamas war. Israel calls it "OperationSummer Camps" (Hebrew: מבצע מחנות קיץ),[31][32][33] while Palestinian militants have labeled their response as the "Horror of the Camps" (Arabic: رعب المخيمات) operation.[34][35]
Israel says its goal is to stop Palestinian militant activity in the West Bank, whereas Palestinians feel that this could be an expansion of the war that aims to expel them out of the territories they aim to establish a state on.[36] Israel also says the raids are aimed to thwart Palestinian suicide bombings, following a failed attempt in Tel Aviv.[37]
Background
Israel's military operation occurs as Israeli settler violence targeting Palestinian infrastructure and civilians in the West Bank has surged.[28] More than 650 Palestinians in the West Bank, including gunmen and civilians were killed since the Hamas-led October 7 attacks, which began the ongoing war, while 27 Israelis, including both civilians and security forces were killed in Palestinian attacks within Israel and the West Bank.[37][38][39]
Timeline
28 August
Israel Defense Forces (IDF) Arabic spokesman Avichay Adraee announced a counterterrorism operation called "Summer Camps" in a joint statement with the Shin Bet.[40][41] Israeli foreign minister Israel Katz stated that the operation was a "full-fledged war" focused on stamping out "terrorist infrastructures", accusing Iran of trying to establish an "eastern terrorist front" against Israel in the West Bank by funding and arming local militants.[30][42] The Israeli operation came about following a failed suicide bombing in Tel Aviv by a Hamas operative, and calls by Hamas for the renewal of suicide attacks.[37][improper synthesis?]
Hundreds of troops from the IDF,[40][43] as well as bulldozers and air support, began operating in Tulkarm and Jenin.[29] Operations were also reported in al-Fara'a refugee camp, near Tubas. Entry points into Tulkarm and Jenin were blocked off by the IDF, which also encircled two hospitals in Tulkarm.[29]
29 August
The IDF killed Muhammad Jabber, known as Abu Shujaa, who led the Tulkarm Brigade, based in Nur Shams. He was wanted by Israel for his involvement in planning and executing multiple attacks against Israeli targets, including the June 2024 shooting of an Israeli civilian.[44][28]
Hamas and Palestinian Islamic Jihad (PIJ) in Tulkarm and Jenin targeted IDF troops operating in these cities with ambushes and explosives.
The IDF withdrew from the al-Fara'a refugee camp, claiming they completed "the objective of foiling terror, exposing terrorist infrastructure and eliminating armed terrorists".[45]
Aftermath of the first raid on Jenin from August to September 2024
The IDF announced that a squad commander of the Bislamach Brigade's 906th Battalion was killed and three others were injured during a shootout with two Hamas fighters in Jenin. Both militants were also killed.[5]
The family of a 10-year-old girl accused the IDF of using her as a human shield.[51]
1 September
The Khalil al-Rahman Brigade, a minor Palestinian militant group, killed three Israeli police officers who were driving near Hebron.[52][53][54]
3 September
A Palestinian girl, Lujain Musleh, aged 16, was reportedly shot dead by the Israeli military in Kafr Dan when she looked out of her home's window; the Israeli military responded that "terrorists opened fire at IDF soldiers in the area, and in response the soldiers fired back at a suspect who observed the forces in the area, in order to remove a threat".[55]
6 September
The IDF withdrew from Jenin, Tulkarm, and their refugee camps.[56][57][58] Following the Israeli withdrawal from Jenin, militants were seen parading through the city.[59]
There was speculation that the withdrawals signified the operation had concluded, but Israel clarified that it was not over and that its forces would continue military actions "in order to achieve the objectives of the counterterrorism operation".[57][60][61]
9 September
It was reported that the Palestinian Authority agreed to a new security deal with Israel that would see its National Security Forces working alongside the IDF in the West Bank to counter militancy when the Israeli operation concludes.[62][63] PA security forces have often colluded with the IDF to an extent, arresting militants, confiscating weapons, interfering with militant ambushes during Israeli incursions, and dismantling explosives.[64][65]
Clashes broke out between militants and PA security forces in the Jenin refugee camp after the latter dismantled an explosive intended to target IDF vehicles near the camp entrance.[66][67]
10 September
The IDF returned to operate inside Tulkarm and its surrounding refugee camps.[68][69][70]
11 September
An Israeli airstrike near Tubas killed five people.[71]
A Palestinian militant carried out a ramming attack near the Givat Asaf settlement, killing one IDF soldier.[72]
The IDF killed 10 people during a raid into al-Fara'a camp, including a UNRWA worker whom Israel accused of participating in Palestinian militancy.[74]
19 September
The IDF battled Palestinian militias in Qabatiya, where it also conducted an airstrike that killed four militants, including Shadi Zakarneh, a local commander.[75][76] Soldiers were seen kicking and throwing the corpses of dead militants off a rooftop in the city.[77]
The IDF conducted a situational assessment in the West Bank to review how to prevent attacks from Palestinian militants ahead of upcoming Jewish holidays.[80]
30 September
In Balata Camp outside Nablus, four IDF soldiers, including one from the elite Duvdevan Unit, were wounded during an exchange of fire with militants.[81][82]
1 October
PA security forces in Nablus shot at and unsuccessfully pursued a local militant, who was killed hours later by the IDF during one of their raids into the city.[83][84]
3 October
An Israeli airstrike on a café in the Tulkarm refugee camp killed at least 20 people, including Zahi Yaser Abd al-Razeq Oufi and Ayyth Radwan, the heads of the local Hamas and PIJ branches, respectively. It was the first Israeli strike on Tulkarm since 2002 during Operation Defensive Shield.[85] The targeting of off-duty militants and Israeli disregard for Palestinian civilian life led to several civilians including elderly and children to be killed in the airstrike, which was the deadliest since the Second Uprising of 2000-2005.[86][87] Laith Jaar, an Al Jazeera journalist who was covering the bombing was assaulted by a PA security officer, who threatened to shoot him. Jaar was subsequently arrested and detained by the PA security forces,[88][89] but was released the next day.[90]
4 October
An Israeli airstrike on a building in the Tulkarm refugee camp killed 12 Hamas and PIJ members who had gathered to plan an attack against Israel.[91]
The Israeli Border Police killed two local al-Aqsa Martyrs' Brigades commanders in Nablus.[93]
The al-Aqsa Martyrs' Brigades fired at an IDF checkpoint near Mount Gerzim.[93]
10 October
Israeli airstrikes killed two PIJ commanders in Tulkarm.[94]
11 October
The al-Aqsa Martyrs' Brigades targeted an IDF checkpoint at Qalandiya with an explosive, and fired at the Avnei Hefetz settlement near Tulkarm.[94]
19 October
PIJ targeted a vehicle in the Mevo Dotan settlement with gunfire.[95]
A militant conducted a ramming attack against an Israeli police vehicle near the Ofra settlement, but was shot dead and did not inflict any casualities.[95][96]
20 October
Three children in Beit Furik, east of Nablus, were wounded by IDF gunfire during a raid into the town.[97]
Four armed Palestinians were detained by the IDF near Nabi Musa, south of Jericho; they were reportedly threatening some hikers in the area.[98][96]
24 October
The IDF foiled an attempted attack, likely from PIJ, against the Avnei Hefetz settlement near Tulkarm, disabling two explosives found at a water well.[99]
25 October
The IDF killed Islam Jamil Odeh, a local Hamas commander in Tulkarm.[100]
Responses
UN secretary general António Guterres, called for Israel to end its operations in the West Bank.[37] UN secretary general spokesman said Israel should "exercise maximum restraint and use lethal force only when it is strictly unavoidable to protect life."[37] In a social media post, the UN Human Rights Office stated it was "appalled" by reports that Israel had "shot and unlawfully killed" three children in Jenin.[101]
The Israeli ambassador to the UN responded by saying that Israel will not wait for suicide bombings, adding that bombs were being smuggled in by Iran.[37] The United States called for Israel to protect civilians in the West Bank during its operations, and recognized Israeli security reasoning for the operation.[37]
Hamas called for Palestinians in the West Bank to rise up and blamed the escalation on United States support for Israel. It also called on the Palestinian Authority's security forces to join the fighting against Israel.
The Palestinian Authority condemned the operation despite its own cooperation with Israel, and called on the United States to intervene.[102]
In late-September 2024, the International Rescue Committee warned that intensifying violence in the West Bank could obstruct the healthcare system.[103]
↑ 21 in Jenin, 13 in Tubas, 12 in Tulkarm, 3 in Hebron, 1 in Nablus, 7 in Qabatiya.[13][14][20]
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1 2 Mccready, Lyndal Rowlands,Alastair (2024-09-25). "One killed, 3 wounded during Israeli raid on Fawwar camp". Al Jazeera. Retrieved 2024-09-25. The Israeli military fired live bullets during clashes with Palestinian resistance groups, wounding four men and killing one of them, according to Wafa.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
1 2 Siddiqui, Usaid (2024-09-21). "Al-Quds Brigades names five fighters killed in West Bank's Qabatiya". Al Jazeera. Retrieved 2024-09-21. We reported yesterday that Israeli forces killed at least seven Palestinians in a raid on the town of Qabatiya in the occupied West Bank, with video footage showing soldiers pushing what appeared to be dead bodies off a rooftop. The armed wing of the Palestinian Islamic Jihad (PIJ) says five of its fighters were among the dead: Ahmed Maher Zakarneh, 28, Mustafa Faisal Zakarneh, 23, Omar Hamza Abu Al-Rub, 24, Muhammad Khaled Abu Al-Rub, 28, Fadi Jawdat Hanaysha, 27.
↑ Adler, Nils; Siddiqui, Usaid. "Man injured in occupied West Bank town during raid". Al Jazeera. Retrieved 2024-09-01. Hamas and Palestinian Islamic Jihad say at least 14 of the dead were members of their armed wings.
↑ Marsi, Federica; Quillen, Stephen (6 September 2024). "Israeli army says 14 killed during Jenin siege". Al Jazeera. Retrieved 6 September 2024. The Israeli army has released a statement saying it killed 14 "terrorists" and arrested more than 30 "suspects" in Jenin, during a siege that lasted 10 days.
↑ Motamedi, Usaid Siddiqui,Maziar (16 September 2024). "Palestinian dies month after being shot in Israeli attack: Ministry". Al Jazeera. Retrieved 16 September 2024. Ahmed Omar Azqili, 43, has died due to critical wounds he sustained from Israeli gunfire in the occupied West Bank city of Jenin about a month ago, the Palestinian Ministry of Health says.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
↑ "Israel says Hamas leader killed as West Bank operation continues". BBC News. 2024-08-30. Retrieved 2024-08-30. At least 19 Palestinians have been killed since the start of the Israeli operation, which is one of the biggest in the West Bank in two decades, according to the Palestinian health ministry. But the UN agency for Palestinian refugees (Unrwa) said children and one person with disabilities were reportedly among the dead.
↑ "Israel kills prominent militant as it wages its deadliest West Bank raids since the Gaza war began". AP News. 2024-08-29. Retrieved 2024-08-29. The Palestinian Health Ministry says over 650 Palestinians have been killed in the West Bank since the start of the war. Most appear to have been militants killed in gunbattles during Israeli operations like the one this week, but civilian bystanders and rock-throwing protesters have also been killed, and the territory saw a surge of Jewish settler violence.
↑ Borger, Julian; Taha, Sufian (2024-08-28). "Israeli forces kill at least 10 Palestinians in West Bank raids and strikes". The Guardian. ISSN0261-3077. Retrieved 2024-08-29. In the first three weeks of August, according to UN figures, 128 Palestinians, including 26 children, were killed by airstrikes in the West Bank. A spokesperson for the UN Human Rights Office, Ravina Shamdasani, said that the IDF operations risked "seriously deepening the already catastrophic situation", and that two of the dead were reportedly children, bringing the overall death toll in the West Bank since 7 October to 637.
↑ Rasheed, Zaheena; Quillen, Stephen (2024-08-29). "Israel claims killing top Palestinian fighter in West Bank firefight". Al Jazeera. Retrieved 2024-08-29. The Israeli military said its forces killed the commander of the Tulkarem Battalion, Mohamed Jaber, also known as Abu Shuja'a, and four other Palestinian fighters in a firefight in the Nur Shams refugee camp in the occupied West Bank.
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