DaysofPal- The Israeli occupation forces (IOF) have demolished one-third of the Jenin Refugee Camp in the northern West Bank and declared that residents will never be allowed to return, in what Palestinian officials say is a systematic campaign of forced displacement.
Former Jenin Mayor Nidal Al-Obeidi stated on Monday that the Israeli violations amount to “a deliberate attempt to erase the camp from the map.”
Al-Obeidi said the military not only barred residents from returning but also threatened to destroy any new structures built in the demolished zone, “to impose a new reality on the ground.”
According to Al-Obeidi, more than one-third of the camp’s pre-assault population of 19,000 people will be permanently displaced from their homes and neighborhoods, where Palestinian families have lived for generations.
He condemned the move as a flagrant violation of international law, calling on the international community to urgently intervene to halt the Israeli crimes, which amount to war crimes.
Al-Obeidi said Israeli forces used bulldozers, armored vehicles, and drones to flatten the targeted areas, dismantling all essential infrastructure, including water, electricity, and sewage networks.
Dozens of homes were leveled to the ground, he added, creating “an unprecedented humanitarian catastrophe” inside the camp.
The destruction in Jenin, he warned, is not an isolated incident but part of a broader Israeli plan to dismantle Palestinian refugee camps across the West Bank, citing their political and historical significance to the Palestinian cause and the right of return.
“The refugee camps have always been and will remain a witness to the Nakba and a symbol of our people’s resilience and determination to return,” Al-Obeidi said.
“Any attempt to erase them will fail, because their memory is etched in the hearts of Palestinians generation after generation.” He added.
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