The IDF, Border Police, and Shin Bet security agency operatives launched a comprehensive counter-terrorism operation late Tuesday night in the northern West Bank, concentrating on Jenin, Tulkarm, and the Jordan Valley region, including the Fara'a refugee camp. The operation marks the largest military action in the West Bank since the start of the Gaza war following the Hamas Oct. 7 onslaught and is comparable in scale to Operation Defensive Shield conducted nearly two decades ago.
The operation's primary objective is to address the growing threat of improvised explosive devices (IEDs). Activities are centered in the area from which the recent Tel Aviv bombing originated, as well as in Jenin and a refugee camp in the Jordan Valley. Officials expect the operation to continue for several days. According to Arab media reports, at least ten Palestinians have been killed in IDF strikes across the West Bank.
Video: IDF bulldozers entering Jenin to destroy terror cells
This operation represents the largest Border Police deployment since the beginning of the conflict, with four Border Police battalions operating alongside undercover units in Jenin and Nur Shams. During the ongoing activity, West Bank undercover units have neutralized several operatives and arrested wanted individuals, while Border Police forces have seized numerous weapons. The scale of forces participating in this operation is unprecedented in a single Border Police activity in the area since the start of the fighting.
Israel Hayom recently reported that the incoming Central Command chief, Maj. Gen. Avi Bluth, had requested the General Staff to establish a brigade-level task force in the northern West Bank amid the ongoing war with terror cells. This was in addition to increasing air strikes and utilizing sophisticated tools against terrorists planning and carrying out attacks. The approval of an operation of this magnitude signals that his request has been granted.
The operation involves brigade-level forces, some of whom were transported to the area via helicopters. Additionally, it includes numerous undercover operatives and employs various deception methods to mislead enemy forces. Upon arrival, the Israeli forces were shot at, leading to an intense exchange of fire.
Video: Exchange of fire between Israeli forces and terrorists in Jenin
In a joint statement, the IDF and Shin Bet announced that "security forces have now begun an operation to counter terrorism in Jenin and Tulkarm in the Menashe Regional Brigade area." Although the official statement did not mention the operation in the Jordan Valley Regional Brigade, the two cannot be separated.
Jenin under siege
The activity in the northern West Bank is supported by significant air support, both for protecting forces and for strikes carried out by attack helicopters and drones against terror targets. Hundreds of soldiers raided the Jenin and Nur Shams refugee camps, leading to a siege in the area.
Furthermore, the forces surrounded the government hospital and Ibn Sina Hospital. This is a crucial operational decision, as terrorists have previously escaped to medical institutions during previous IDF counter-terrorism and arrest operations in the area.
Currently, the main operational activity in Tulkarm is focused on the Nur Shams refugee camp. Palestinians report heavy exchanges of fire in the area.
It should be noted that two days ago, an IDF aircraft struck a "war room," resulting in the deaths of five terrorists, at least two of whom were affiliated with Hamas and one with Palestinian Islamic Jihad. According to Palestinian reports, the strike targeted the home of the commander of the Palestinian Islamic Jihad cell in Tulkarm, but he was not among the casualties.
In addition to searching for wanted individuals, IDF engineering forces are destroying road infrastructure in the Palestinian city. This is likely to expose hidden explosives under main access routes and to hinder escape attempts.
Parallel to the intense activity in the northern West Bank, the Jordan Valley Regional Brigade has begun an operation to dismantle cells in the Fara'a refugee camp and Tubas. So far, Palestinians report that four terrorists have been killed and ten others wounded in the refugee camp as part of IDF strikes.
The defense establishment tends to classify the cells in the northern West Bank and the infrastructure in the Jordan Valley similarly due to their identical characteristics. The operation, which is also supported by helicopters and air assets, is not a direct part of the operation in the northern West Bank, but it was likely taken into account during the preliminary planning of the action.
Foreign Minister Israel Katz responded to the IDF's activity in the West Bank, writing, "The IDF has been operating forcefully since last night in the Jenin and Tulkarm refugee camps to dismantle Islamic-Iranian cells established there. Iran is working to establish an eastern front against Israel in the West Bank, following the Gaza and Lebanon model, by funding and arming operatives and smuggling advanced weapons from Jordan.
*"We must address this threat exactly as we deal with the infrastructure in Gaza, including temporary evacuation of residents and any necessary measure. This is a full-fledged war, and we must win it," Katz wrote.
