|
Trending Topics
|
Israeli Forces Are Trying a New Tactic in a West Bank Militant Hub
(Wall Street Journal) Dov Lieber - For decades, the Jenin refugee camp has been a central breeding ground and place of shelter for Palestinian militants. In recent weeks, Israeli bulldozers, looking for hidden explosives, have reduced much of the roads to sand and mud. The fighting and controlled demolitions by Israel have reduced many buildings to rubble. Only Israeli soldiers stationed in Jenin patrol its streets. In recent years, Israel's military has conducted hundreds of raids into the camp, and dozens in the past year alone. But Israel has never tried anything like what it is doing now: clearing the camps entirely. It is part of Israel's aggressive security posture following the attacks of Oct. 7, 2023, actively working inside enemy territory to pre-empt new threats. "When I started, there were a lot of operations for two or three days," said an Israeli military officer stationed in the Jenin area for the past year. Once each operation is over, the militants regroup and rearm. Now, the officer said, "We're trying to make sure they won't have time to recover."