Israel launches deadly attack on Jenin refugee camp in the occupied West Bank. Israel-Palestine conflict news

Several people have been killed in an Israeli military attack on the Jenin refugee camp in the occupied West Bank.

Palestinian health services said at least 10 Palestinians were killed and 35 wounded in the raid, which was launched in the early hours of Tuesday, continued through the night and is expected to last for several days.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said the operation, dubbed “Iron Wall”, was aimed at “eliminating terrorism” in the region.

The Palestinian Red Crescent said its first responders treated seven people injured by live ammunition, adding that Israeli forces were blocking access to the area.

UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres called for “maximum restraint” from security forces and said he was “deeply concerned”.

Israeli NGO B’Tselem accused the Israeli government of using the Gaza ceasefire as “a pretext and opportunity to increase oppression of West Bank Palestinians”.

“This does not look like a ceasefire,” it said.

Jenin’s governor, Kamal Abu al-Rouab, told AFP that the operation was an “attack on a refugee camp”.

“It came fast, Apache helicopters in the sky and Israeli military vehicles everywhere,” he said.

A spokesman for the Palestinian security forces said in a statement that Israeli forces “fired on civilians and security forces, resulting in the injuries of several civilians and several security personnel, one of whom is in critical condition”.

Al Jazeera senior political analyst Marwan Bishara said attacks on Palestinians in the West Bank were always possible after hostilities in Gaza stopped.

He suggested that the raid also served to distract public attention following the resignation of Israeli military commanders over their failure to protect Israel from a Hamas attack in October 2023.

“I think the Netanyahu government is diverting attention. Where is it deflected? In the West Bank. In Jenin. By various captives and by a major attack on Jenin that will probably last for days, weeks – perhaps even longer.’

In recent months, the frequency and intensity of raids in Jenin have increased.