He The Israeli army killed eight Palestinians and wounded 80 in Jenin on Mondayin the occupied West Bank, during a “extensive counter-terrorism operation” with drone strikes.

The Israel Defense Forces claimed the aim was to attack a “terrorist infrastructure” and a “joint operations center” which they say serves as a command post for the “Jenin Brigade”, a local militant group.

Thousands of residents of the Jenin refugee camp, in the north of the occupied West Bank, were evacuated amid tonight’s foreseeable resurgence of the full-scale military operation by the Israeli army, which is preparing to attack the camp with more troops.

The Red Crescent reported that its teams have evacuated some 3,000 people, though they warned of “difficulties moving through the countryside as many roads have been cut amid so much devastation,” a spokesman for the organization said.

Palestinian media reports that residents of the camp have left their homes after they say the Israeli army issued an ultimatum and gave them two hours to leave the camp, a period set to end at midnight, when the violence was expected to stop. will increase. offensive.

In another statement released Monday at 10:20 local time (0720 GMT), the military indicated that the The gunfire continued in the Palestinian refugee camp next to the town of Jenin in the northern West Bank. territory occupied by Israel since 1967.

The Israeli armed forces attacked a factory for the production of weapons and storage of explosives, the armed body said.

Eight Palestinians were killed and 80 injured, 17 of them seriously. in this Israeli operation, according to the Palestinian Ministry of Health.

The Palestinian Foreign Ministry accused the Israeli army of “open war against the people of Jenin”.

In another incident, “a man was killed by (Israeli) occupation gunfire at the northern entrance of Al Bireh, near Ramallah,” it added.

According to an army statement, a “soldier was slightly injured by (Israeli) army shrapnel during the operation” in Jenin.

Large-scale in the West Bank

“We are attacking this center of terrorism (in Jenin) with great force,” Israeli Foreign Minister Eli Cohen told reporters in Jerusalem.

Defense chief Yoav Gallant, for his part, stated that a “proactive strategy” against terrorism was being followed.

“People knew we were probably going in, but the airstrike method surprised them,” said Lieutenant Colonel Richard Hecht, an army spokesman.

The military focuses on “specific targets”. “The aerial platforms were UAVs (unmanned aerial vehicles),” he specified.

The town of Jenin and the adjacent refugee camp are areas of frequent clashes between Israeli troops and Palestinian militants.

The Israeli army regularly raids the sector, which is theoretically commanded by Palestinian Authority President Mahmud Abbas.

Residents evacuate Jenin refugee camp during an Israeli military operation in the occupied West Bank on July 3, 2023. Photo: AFP

“There is shelling and a ground invasion,” Mahmud al-Saadi, director of the Palestinian Red Crescent in Jenin, told AFP.

“Several houses and places were bombed (…) Smoke is coming out everywhere,” he added.

A resident of the town, Badr Shagul, said he saw “bulldozers in the field destroying houses”. The situation is “catastrophic,” Mahmud Hawashin added.