Foreign Minister Israel Katz urged Israel to consider temporarily relocating Palestinians as part of a significant anti-terror operation in the northern West Bank on Wednesday, 28 August.
“We need to deal with the [terror] threat exactly as we deal with terror infrastructure in Gaza, including the temporary evacuation of Palestinian civilians and any other step needed,” he said on X . “This is a war in every sense.”
In his post, Katz stated that Israeli forces in Jenin, Tulkarem, and other areas are targeting an Iranian-backed terror network being established in the West Bank.
He added that Iran is aiming to create a terror front against Israel in the West Bank, similar to its strategies in Lebanon and Gaza, by funding and arming terrorists and smuggling advanced weapons from Jordan.
On Wednesday, the Israeli army launched a major new assault on four cities in the West Bank—Jenin, Nablus, Tubas, and Tulkarem. The operation, which involved airstrikes, ground forces, and bulldozers, resulted in the deaths of at least 10 Palestinians, according to the Palestinian Red Crescent.
The latest operation follows an airstrike conducted by Israel two days earlier on the West Bank, which the Palestinian Authority reported resulted in the deaths of five people. The strike targeted the Nur Shams refugee camp near Tulkarem. The Israel Defence Forces (IDF) stated that the strike was intended to dismantle a “terror cell.”
Israeli state radio described the operation as the largest since 2002, featuring significant involvement from the air force and large military units, with extensive use of helicopters and fighter jets.
According to the Palestinian Red Crescent, at least 11 Palestinians have been killed by drones since the operation began at dawn on Wednesday.
The West Bank and East Jerusalem have been occupied by Israel since the 1967 6-day war. Since then, 160 settlements housing 700,000 Israelis have been built by the Israeli government. In July 2024, the International Court of Justice (ICJ) ruled Israel’s occupation illegal, citing violations of international law and Israel’s abuse of power.
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