West Bank: Israeli army raid Balata camp near Nablus, force families to leave

Israeli forces stormed the Balata refugee camp in Nablus, occupied West bank early on Wednesday, forcing several families to leave their homes, according to Palestinian media.

Eyewitnesses said the Israeli army deployed scores of soldiers into the camp as well as armored vehicles, searching and raiding homes, as well as converting some of them into military barracks.

The Palestinian Red Crescent said at least one 15-yearold boy was injured during the raid.

Ahmed Dhuqan, the head of the Popular Committee for Services in the Balata camp, told The New Arab’s Arabic-language site, Al-Araby Al-Jadeed: "The occupation forces raided a large number of homes, forcing families to flee. Meanwhile, [they also] conducted field investigations and arrested residents."

Dhuqan confirmed that "several schools in and around the camp have switched to e-learning" due to the ongoing raids, warning that "the aggression may continue for a long time".

Videos shared on social media by Palestinians showed the camp’s residents, including women and small children, forced to leave their homes amid the dawn raid while carrying as many belongings as possible.

One forcibly displaced person told Al Jazeera Arabic that he was forced to leave the camp with his family without being told when they could return.

Witnesses also said that the Israeli army imposed a curfew on the Balata camp, which is located east of Nablus.

Later in the morning, Palestinians said the Israeli army sent a new military vehicle convoy into the camp.

Israel’s Wednesday raid on the camp comes amid a large-scale military operation in the West Bank ongoing since January, targeting several cities and refugee camps in the occupied territory.

Among the most targeted cities include Jenin and Tulkarem, where raids, killings, arrests and the destruction of homes have persisted for over 70 days.

Israel-led violence in the West Bank increased significantly since Israel began waging its military onslaught in the Gaza Strip on 7 October, 2023. At least 944 Palestinians in the territory have been killed since, 7,000 injured and over 15,000 arrested, according to UN figures.

The camp, like many in the West Bank, has been subject to deadly raids over the past 18 months.

Also on Wednesday, incursions were also reported in Qabatiya, south of Jenin and where army vehicles were deployed.

Home demolitions 

Elsewhere in the West Bank, Israeli forces blew up the home of slain Palestinian Mujahid Mansour Karajah in the village of Dei Ibzi’, west of Ramallah.

Karajah was reportedly behind a 2024 shooting carried out on a bus near the Israeli settlement of Dolev, located near Ramallah.

Israeli forces shot and killed the 33-year-old Palestinian was shot and killed hours following the attack in March last year.

Israeli forces forced a Palestinian man to destroy his own home in the town of Beit Safafa, southeast of occupied east Jerusalem, Al-Araby Al-Jadeed reported.

Alaa Alian was ordered to demolish his two-storey home under the guise of not having the correct permit to build and own the property. Israeli forces often carry out such demolitions in the West Bank and east Jerusalem under this pretext.