Israeli security forces continued their extensive counterterrorism operation on Wednesday evening, targeting terrorists and dismantling explosives in the West Bank and the Jordan Valley.
Hundreds of soldiers, including undercover units and Border Police forces, with significant air support, operated in the Jenin and Nur Shams refugee camps near Tulkarm, as well as in the nearby city of Tubas. A large-scale raid was also carried out in the Far'a refugee camp in the Jordan Valley.
According to the IDF, at least nine terrorists were killed, while Palestinian sources reported 11 fatalities. The IDF noted that three terrorists were killed in an airstrike in Jenin, two more were killed by undercover Border Police units in the same area, and four others were eliminated in Far'a – also in an airstrike. The military wings of Hamas, Islamic Jihad and Fatah issued separate statements claiming that their operatives had planted explosives in an attempt to target Israeli forces. No casualties were reported among Israeli forces during the raids.
West Bank counterterrorism operation
(Video: Reuters)
The IDF is using bulldozers to uncover roadside explosives, a process that often requires the destruction of the roads themselves. Footage from Jenin showed a terrorist planting an explosive device on the side of a road. It is unclear what became of him. Other footage from Jenin revealed bulldozers uncovering explosives and subsequent detonations occurring near or directly beneath them.
Kamel Abu al-Rub, the governor of Jenin, claimed that Israeli forces had encircled the city, destroyed infrastructure and blocked access routes to hospitals. The Palestinian Health Ministry reported that the main hospital in Jenin was blocked with dirt mounds as part of the operation – a measure the IDF did not deny.
IDF spokesperson Nadav Shoshani explained to foreign media that the goal was to prevent terrorists from fleeing to hospitals and hiding there, a tactic they have used before. According to the Palestinian Red Crescent, Israeli forces also surrounded the main hospital in the Tulkarm area and conducted checks on ambulances attempting to reach various hospitals.
This evening, the IDF released new footage from the operation, including a drone video showing an "operations command center" and an explosives lab set up inside a mosque in the Far'a refugee camp in the Jordan Valley. The terror compound within the mosque was identified by Duvdevan unit soldiers. In the video, a soldier explains that they entered the site with a drone and discovered a command room with cameras, images of armed "martyrs," and photos of terrorists. The command room was wired to cameras broadcasting the outside surroundings to screens inside.
A terrorist placing an explosive device
In another part of the mosque, the soldiers found the explosives lab, which contained devices used for making explosives, including a welding machine and a sack of potassium. Inside a smaller room, they also discovered several ready-to-use explosive devices "simply connected to cables and ready for activation." The IDF also released an image of a uniform worn by one of the terrorists killed in Jenin, complete with a vest, magazines and an M-16 rifle, which is being checked to determine if it was stolen from the IDF.
IDF Chief of Staff Herzi Halevi addressed the operation in the afternoon during a visit to the Jordan Valley and Emek HaYarden Brigade. The IDF reported that Halevi toured the site where a terrorist who shot at the Beka'ot settlement two weeks ago was killed and held a situational assessment with commanders regarding the eastern border and security efforts in the West Bank and Jordan Valley. Later, he met with local council leaders from the Jordan Valley, Emek HaYarden, Emek HaMaayanot, and Megilot Dead Sea regions.
"The IDF is fighting in seven arenas with very different characteristics," Halevi said. "We are here to first and foremost strengthen security, and then to reinforce the sense of security. There is great importance in the readiness of emergency response teams, and we are working to bolster them, investing significant resources in doing so. We will be here as much as we can with more forces and resources to build a better security infrastructure that will create better security for the communities. This will happen thanks to the partnership between us and you."