RAMALLAH — The United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees
(UNRWA) warned that the "shocking scenes in the West Bank undermine the
ceasefire reached in Gaza and risk a new escalation."
In a press statement, the UNRWA said a series of
controlled detonations by Israeli forces have completely destroyed large
swathes of Jenin camp, noting that it had not received any prior warning about
the demolitions, putting civilian lives at risk, Xinhua news agency reported.
"Residents of the camp have endured the impossible,
facing nearly two months of unceasing and escalating violence. In the last
months, Jenin camp has been rendered a ghost town," it added.
Earlier in the day, the Palestinian presidency condemned
Israel's expansion of its "war" in the West Bank to displace
Palestinians, warning of the dangerous consequences of such actions.
Nabil Abu Rudeineh, spokesperson for the Palestinian
presidency, warned that the ongoing Israeli "aggression" would lead
to further escalation. He stressed that the Palestinian people would not accept
any plan for displacement or an alternative homeland.
On January 21, the Israeli army launched a security
operation called "Iron Wall" in Jenin, its refugee camp, and other
areas of the northern West Bank, claiming it aimed to target armed militants
and dismantle "terrorist" infrastructure.
Since then, 29 Palestinians have been killed, and
residential blocks in the Jenin and Tulkarm camps have been demolished, Nabil
Abu Rudeineh told Palestinian news agency WAFA.
Tulkarm Governor Abdullah Kamil announced in a press
release on Monday that Israeli forces have forcibly displaced around 9,000
residents, or over 75 per cent of the population of the Tulkarm refugee camp.
The raid in Jenin and other places in the northern West
Bank came only two days after a ceasefire between Hamas and Israel took effect
in Gaza.
