The Palestinian Authority (PA) reported on Tuesday that Israeli forces have killed five Palestinians, including a 60-year-old woman, in the occupied West Bank city of Jenin during the last day. This incident raises the total number of Palestinian deaths to at least 30 since January, when Israel started a large scale military operation targeting northern West Bank cities and refugee camps.
The ongoing military operation by Israel currently involves thousands of troops. The operation has caused tens of thousands of Palestinians to leave their homes and be displaced, after a ceasefire in Gaza allowed Israeli forces to change their focus. The IDF has been going through refugee camps, demolishing buildings and critical infrastructure such as roads and water systems. Israel claims that the purpose of this operation is to dismantle Palestinian militant groups, including Hamas and Islamic Jihad, which it says operate in areas originally set aside for Palestinians displaced during the 1948 Middle East war.
The PA and witnesses report several civilian casualties occurring during this operation. On Tuesday, Israeli special forces engaged in a gunfight with Palestinians in a Jenin house, killing two and injuring another. Separately, troops shot a man who allegedly fired at them, with no proof. The PA also said that Israeli forces fatally shot an elderly woman at a checkpoint, something which the Israeli military has not responded to. In another incident, a Palestinian man died when an Israeli military vehicle struck his motorcycle, the PA said.
Countries like France and Germany, alongside the United Nations, have raised concerns over the operation’s intensity and urged restraint. NGOs say that the operation could also worsen humanitarian conditions in the West Bank. All the while, Israel continues its operation.