Israel demands UNRWA cease aid to West Bank camps before displaced Palestinians return.
Israel has displaced tens of thousands of Palestinian refugees from camps in the West Bank this year
Israel is demanding that UNRWA no longer provide services to West Bank refugee camps as its major condition for the return of residents to their homes, Israel's Channel 15 reported on 7 December.
The Palestinian Authority (PA) is reportedly negotiating with Israel to secure the return of tens of thousands of refugees displaced from their homes in camps in the north of the occupied West Bank, most prominently from Jenin Camp, due to Israeli military operations that began early this year.
Israel has set five conditions for the return of the refugees to the camps, most notably to Jenin Camp. According to sources speaking with Channel 15, the "most important" is that the PA replace UNRWA and international relief organizations as service providers to the camps.
Israel believes that removing UNRWA from the camps will help eliminate Palestinian hopes of realizing the right of return.
Palestinian refugees living in camps in the West Bank were ethnically cleansed from their homes, in what is now recognized as Israel, by Zionist militias during the 1948 Nakba, paving the way for the establishment of the State of Israel.
However, the PA said it has rejected the Israeli demand, saying doing so would help to "erase the refugee issue" or abandon it.
Israel also sought to defund and dismantle UNRWA to prevent it from providing aid to Palestinians in Gaza after the start of the genocide in October 2023.
Israel also stated that the return of the refugees to the camps will only be permitted after the Israeli military completes the "re-engineering of the area."
Israel said that the reconstruction of roads deliberately destroyed during the military operations will be done in full coordination with the army.
The PA will be required to establish checkpoints and police stations to "prevent the entry of elements classified by Israel as terrorists into the camps," and to re-install underground electricity and water infrastructure that was also destroyed by Israel's military.
The Israeli army launched a widescale operation against the city of Jenin on 21 January, invading and besieging its refugee camp and beginning a systematic campaign of destruction and displacement.
In March, the Municipality Director of Jenin, Mamdouh Assaf, said that life in the city had been almost completely destroyed after the Israeli siege and assault, which had by then been ongoing for nearly two months.
The operation quickly expanded to include other cities in the occupied West Bank – namely, Tulkarem, which was then attacked for 50 days. The city's two main camps – Nour Shams Refugee Camp and Tulkarem Refugee Camp – bore the brunt of the attack.
Over 43,000 people were displaced in both Jenin and Tulkarem. At least 47 were killed, and dozens of others were injured.
Israeli forces have destroyed hundreds of homes and buildings in both cities with explosives and bulldozers. Several areas of the Jenin and Tulkarem camps were taken over and transformed into military posts.
On 9 April, Israeli forces launched a major military raid on Jenin Camp, surrounding the family home of Raad Hazem, the 28-year-old man who carried out a shooting attackon Israeli settlers in Tel Aviv two days before.
The occupation forces entered the camp from different sides and deployed snipers. The forces faced strong armed resistance from the locals of Jenin as they tried to enter. Several Israeli officers were injured in the attempt.
An order was issued to residents of Jenin to evacuate their homes.
The Israeli military deliberately destroyed much of the camp in order to make it more accessible to its own vehicles, while forbidding residents from returning.
"The army detonated entire residential blocks and bulldozed narrow streets and alleyways, while also installing more surveillance cameras and building new military watchtowers," +972 Magazine reported at the time.
"We were forced out of our homes without any warning," 63-year-old Mona Obeid recounted to +972.
"We didn't have a chance to take anything with us — not even clothes. We have no idea what's happening inside the camp. We rely on a few images and videos taken by journalists who managed to sneak in, searching for any glimpse that might show us what happened to our homes and neighborhoods," Obeid stated.
In November, Israeli occupation forces expanded their assault to Tubas, launching sweeping arrest raids and reinforcing their positions across the northern West Bank with large troop deployments and aerial support, carrying out destructive raids that damaged homes, farmland, and key infrastructure, marking one of the most intense invasions in the area in months.