Israeli army begins demolition of 17 Palestinian homes in West Bank refugee camp

By Qais Abu Samra

TULKAREM CITY, Palestine (AA) - The Israeli army began to demolish 17 Palestinian homes in the Nur Shams refugee camp in the northern West Bank on Thursday amid a military offensive in the occupied territory, witnesses said.

Military bulldozers moved into the camp east of Tulkarem city and began to raze the buildings, they added.

It came hours after Israeli authorities issued demolition orders for the buildings on Wednesday to allegedly build a road in the Al-Manshiya neighborhood in the camp.

In statements to Anadolu on Wednesday, Nihad Al-Shawish, head of a local service committee in the camp, warned that the demolitions will leave dozens of families homeless.

Shawish noted that 11 Palestinian homes were also razed by the Israeli army in the camp a few days ago.

"This is a collective punishment aimed at changing the geography of the camp under false security pretexts," he said.

The Israeli army has been conducting military operations in the northern West Bank since Jan. 21, killing at least 65 people and displacing thousands.

Palestinian authorities have warned that the Israeli military offensive is part of a broader plan by Benjamin Netanyahu’s government to annex the occupied West Bank and declare sovereignty over it, which could officially mark the end of the two-state solution.

Tension has been running high across the West Bank, where at least 930 Palestinians have been killed and nearly 7,000 others injured in attacks by the Israeli army and illegal settlers since the start of the Gaza war on Oct. 7, 2023, according to the Health Ministry.

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