The largest military operation by Israeli forces in the occupied West Bank in years has ended with their departure from the Palestinian city of Jenin.
According to reports, convoys of Israeli military vehicles left Jenin Tuesday night, appearing to mark the end of an operation that started early on Monday.
At least five Palestinian fighters and one Israeli soldier had been killed.
The army claimed the operation, which aimed to remove militant infrastructure and weapons in the Jenin refugee camp, began on Monday with a drone attack, and over 1,000 troops were deployed.
One of the focal points of a wave of violence that has swept the West Bank for more than a year, raising significant international worry, has been the crowded refugee camp, where over 14,000 people live in less than half a square kilometer.
Explosions continued to be heard in Jenin as Israeli troops left the northern West Bank city amid reports of a gunbattle taking place close to a hospital. Reuters was unable to quickly confirm that claim.
To thwart routine army incursions, Palestinian militant forces from Hamas, Islamic Jihad, and Fatah reinforced the camp with barriers and observation points.
Power and water supplies remained cut off in the camp and in some areas of the city after bulldozers that ploughed up roads looking for improvised bombs cut cables and a main water pipe.
Israeli forces uncovered underground explosives caches, one concealed in a tunnel under a mosque, confiscated 1,000 weapons and arrested 30 suspects, the military said.
The Palestinian Red Crescent said it had evacuated 500 families from the camp, around 3,000 people.
The United States said it respected Israel’s right to defend itself but said it was imperative to avoid civilian casualties. The EU said it was gravely concerned by the escalation and U.N. bodies voiced alarm at the scale of the military action.
The United Nations Security Council announced that it will convene behind closed doors, as requested by the United Arab Emirates. The action was denounced by Saudi Arabia and Bahrain.
Many businesses shuttered on Tuesday in response to demands for a national strike to condemn the operation, which the Palestinian Authority has called a “war crime.”
