Israeli army deploys more forces to northern West Bank as deadly offensive enters 8th day

By Qais Abu Samra

RAMALLAH, Palestine (AA) - The Israeli army on Wednesday deployed more forces to the occupied northern West Bank amid ongoing major offensive which entered its eighth day.

An Anadolu correspondent reported that the Israeli army pushed military reinforcement into certain areas in Jenin and Tulkarem, amid fire exchange with Palestinian fighters.

The Israeli army has tightened its blockade on the Jenin refugee camp, pushing in more forces escorted by drones and bulldozers.

According to eyewitnesses, the Israeli army detained several Palestinians from the Jenin refugee camp, interrogated them, but later released them.

The Israeli army's bulldozers destroyed more infrastructure in Jenin city and its camp, cutting the water and electricity services to the citizens, the witnesses added.

In Tulkarem, the Israeli army continued to bulldoze the city's infrastructure, while its soldiers broke into several homes after blowing their gates, the eyewitnesses told Anadolu.

The Palestinian Red Crescent Society said its medical teams treated and transferred to hospital eight Palestinians who suffered suffocation from fires that erupted in the Tulkarem refugee camp as a result of the Israeli offensive.

Meanwhile, the Palestinian groups, including the Hamas and Islamic Jihad groups and Al-Aqsa Martyrs Brigades of the ruling Fatah group, announced in separate statements that their fighters are confronting the Israeli forces in Tulkarem.

The Israeli army last week launched its largest military operation in the northern West Bank in two decades, killing at least 33 people and causing massive destruction.

The offensive came amid rising tensions in the occupied territory as Israel pressed ahead with its brutal onslaught on the Gaza Strip, which has killed more than 40,800 Palestinians, mostly women and children, since Oct. 7 last year.

At least 685 people have since been killed and more than 5,700 injured by Israeli fire in the West Bank, according to the Health Ministry.

The escalation followed a landmark opinion by the International Court of Justice on July 19 that declared Israel's decades-long occupation of Palestinian land unlawful and demanded the evacuation of all settlements in the West Bank and East Jerusalem.

*Writing by Ahmed Asmar​​​​​​​