Aggression on Jenin Refugee Camp: 600 Homes Destroyed and 15,000 Displaced

Watan-For the first time in 23 years, since the Israeli occupation destroyed the Jenin refugee camp in the northern West Bank, 17 days of the current aggression under the military operation “Iron Walls” have resulted in the demolition of around 600 housing units and the displacement of approximately 15,000 residents.

The military operation, which the occupation claimed was targeting the resistance, struck the camp’s infrastructure, leaving widespread destruction in the streets, water and electricity networks, and hundreds of homes. As a result, the camp has become an abandoned area with neighborhoods nearly destroyed due to the bombing and demolition of houses. The current aggression has led to the martyrdom of 25 civilians and has disrupted the operation of four hospitals.

The aggression forced around 3,470 families to flee to 30 nearby villages, where shelters were set up to accommodate the displaced, totaling about 15,000 people. Additionally, more than 600 housing units were destroyed through explosions, arson, demolition, and bulldozing. However, no official and accurate statistics on the extent of the destruction are available due to the ongoing Israeli aggression and the inability of teams to reach these homes, according to Bashir Matatna, the head of media and public relations at Jenin Municipality.

Matatna explained that “vast areas of Jenin, including the camp, suffer from a complete water outage due to the destruction of the water networks by the aggression. Amid the worsening humanitarian situation, hospitals are facing catastrophic conditions.

Emergency teams have barely managed in the past few days to reopen the entrance road to Jenin Governmental Hospital (Martyr Khalil Suleiman Hospital) after it was destroyed and bulldozed earlier, obstructing ambulance access for transporting patients and the wounded, particularly the elderly. With the ongoing storm bringing heavy rainfall, the road has become unusable except for four-wheel-drive vehicles, which are scarce and unavailable to residents.”

He further noted that “since the beginning of the occupation’s military operations, education in Jenin has come to a complete halt, affecting thousands of students. Regarding infrastructure, 14 high-voltage transformers were destroyed, over 200 electricity poles were knocked down, and 10 electricity transmission towers were leveled to the ground. The estimated losses from these severe damages amount to tens of millions of dollars.”

Around 90% of the displaced residents from the camp were forced to stay in the homes of relatives outside the camp, given the lack of adequate relief solutions and no clear prospect for resolving their situation or knowing when they might return to the camp, which is no longer livable.

Matatna stated that “Jenin Municipality has issued an urgent appeal to the international community and human rights and humanitarian organizations to intervene immediately and provide essential medical and food aid for the displaced from the camp, given the dire living conditions they are enduring, especially since current government support is insufficient.”

In a previous statement, Jenin Municipality indicated that its teams are working within their available capacities to deliver necessary services to the devastated areas. The municipality emphasized that the impact of the aggression exceeds its capabilities and resources.