The Israeli Occupation Army Kills Five Palestinians in Jenin Refugee Camp

Jenin (Palestine) – Continued

Publication date: June 19, 2023 11:14 pm Saudi Arabia.

Introduction

The Israeli occupation army killed five Palestinians and wounded dozens more during a major military operation it carried out yesterday in the Jenin refugee camp in the north West Bank on Monday. The operation used helicopter gunships in addition to armed clashes in which seven members of the Israeli forces were injured.

First Time Helicopters Used to Bomb Palestinian Targets in Jenin Since the Second Intifada

This is the first time that Israeli military helicopters have been used to bomb Palestinian targets in Jenin since the second Palestinian intifada (2000-2005), a Palestinian security source who asked not to be named told AFP.

Details of the Raid

On Monday afternoon, an AFP photographer saw Israeli military vehicles heading towards the Jenin camp as the raid continued. The Palestinian Health Ministry confirmed “five Palestinian deaths and 91 injuries, including 12 serious and critical injuries” during the raid. The ministry said the dead were Khaled Azzam Asasa (21), Kassam Faisal Abu Sariya (29), a boy Ahmed Youssef Saqr (15) and Qais Majdi Adel Jabarin (21).

During the coverage of the raid, the operator of the TV channel was injured. And the Palestinian Red Crescent announced that Israeli forces “hit two ambulances with live bullets, causing property damage,” stressing that “ambulances are being prevented from reaching the wounded in Jenin.”

Israeli Defense Minister’s Statement

Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant promised to continue the “offensive policy”. “We will use every means at our disposal to strike terrorist elements wherever they are, and the terrorists will have no safe haven in Jenin or Nablus or Gaza,” he said.

Reaction from Palestinian Officials

Jenin Deputy Governor Kamal Abu Al-Rub told AFP that “a large Israeli army force stormed the camp after morning prayers and there were violent clashes with the Israeli army, resulting in several people being injured, some seriously.” Palestinian Presidential spokesman Nabil Abu Rudeina said: “The occupational massacres are aimed at blowing up the region and the current situation cannot continue. The international community, and the US administration in particular, must intervene immediately to stop this Israeli madness.”

In a statement, the Palestinian Foreign Ministry condemned what it called the “occupation’s continued aggression” against Jenin, saying it represented “a dangerous escalation in the arena of conflict and Israel’s official call for a cycle of violence.” Regarding the Secretary of the Executive Committee of the Liberation Organization Palestine Hussein al-Sheikh, he tweeted: “A fierce and open war is being waged against the Palestinian people politically, security-wise, and economically by the occupying forces.”