According to sources in The Guardian and the AFP news agency, thousands of Palestinians have left the Jenin refugee camp since the Israeli army started a large operation in the occupied West Bank.
On Monday, Israel began its largest military operation in the occupied West Bank in almost two decades, deploying hundreds of soldiers on an open-ended mission into a terrorist stronghold and conducting a series of drone strikes.
According to the Palestinian Ministry of Health, at least 10 people were murdered and 100 were wounded, including 20 in serious condition.
Kamal Abu al-Roub, the deputy governor of Jenin, told the AFP news agency, “There are about 3,000 people who have left the camp so far.” Arrangements have been made to place them in schools and other shelters in the city of Jenin. He estimated that over 18,000 Palestinians call the camp home on a regular basis.
Despite Israeli claims that the operation may take many days, the Palestinian Red Crescent rescue organisation reported a similar number and said it anticipated the evacuation to continue.
United Nations agency for Palestinian refugees spokesman Juliette Touma confirmed to AFP that people were fleeing the camp. The UN organisation for Palestinian refugees (UNRWA) said that a large number of camp inhabitants lacked access to basic necessities including food, water, and milk powder.
Since its establishment in the 1950s, the camp on the outskirts of the northern West Bank city of Jenin has been considered as a breeding ground for armed resistance by Palestinians and terrorism by Israelis.
