Jenin refugee camp declared ‘disaster area' amid Israeli assault in West Bank

Jenin Governor Mohammed Jarrar declared the city's refugee camp in the northern West Bank a “disaster area” on Wednesday as the Israeli army continued a deadly raid in the occupied territory.

“The entire infrastructure in the Jenin refugee camp, including streets, sewage systems, and water, electricity, and communications networks, has been completely destroyed,” Jarrar told Anadolu.

He said most Palestinian residents of the camp and adjacent neighborhoods have been “forcibly displaced” as Israeli army forces demolished entire residential blocks and set fire to homes in the area.

Jarrar estimated that 65% of the infrastructure in Jenin city has been ruined.

The Israeli army has continued a deadly military offensive in the northern West Bank since Jan. 21, killing over 70 Palestinians and displacing thousands.

The assault came as the army renewed deadly airstrikes on Gaza on Tuesday, killing at least 436 people, injuring hundreds, and shattering a ceasefire deal with Hamas that took hold in January.

Tension has been running high across the occupied West Bank, where at least 937 Palestinians have been killed and over 7,000 injured in attacks by the Israeli army and illegal settlers since the start of the Gaza onslaught on Oct. 7, 2023, according to the Palestinian Health Ministry.

In July, the International Court of Justice declared Israel's longstanding occupation of Palestinian territories illegal, calling for the evacuation of all settlements in the West Bank and East Jerusalem.