Israel launches deadly attack on heart of resistance in West Bank
Palestinians vow to retaliate
Israeli aircraft and ground forces conducted a massive raid on Jenin in the occupied West Bank with drones early Monday, killing at least eight Palestinians and injuring dozens, some of them in critical condition.
The Palestinians and neighboring Jordan and Egypt and the 57-nation Organization of Islamic Cooperation condemned the violence.
The regime deployed hundreds of troops in the area, in an incursion that resembled the wide-scale military operations carried out during the second Palestinian uprising two decades ago.
Palestinian health officials said at least eight Palestinians were killed and dozens wounded, AP reported.
Troops remained inside the Jenin refugee camp at midday Monday, pushing ahead with the largest operation in the area during more than a year of fighting.
Black smoke rose from the crowded streets of the camp, exchanges of fire rang out and the buzzing of drones could be heard overhead as the military pressed on. Residents said electricity was cut off in some parts and military bulldozers plowed through narrow streets, damaging buildings as they cleared the way for Israeli forces.
Vow of retaliation
Palestinian resistance factions have pledged to retaliate against the deadly act of aggression by the occupying regime against the northern West Bank city, Press TV reported.
In a statement released on Monday, the Joint Chamber of Palestinian Resistance Groups urged all resistance fighters in Jenin and its refugee camp to stand by each other and fight the enemy in a unified manner.
The Palestinian Islamic Jihad (PIJ) also said in a statement that Israel will not achieve its goals and that Jenin will not surrender.
“The aggression against Jenin will not achieve its goals, and we will remain [in] Jenin as a symbol of steadfastness,” the statement said. “Our fighters are determined to confront and fight no matter the sacrifices.”
It added that all options are on the table, including striking the enemy in response to its aggression in Jenin.
Hamas Spokesperson Hazem Qassem also said that the aggression will not achieve its goals adding that the Zionist enemy will fail.
Ismail Haniyeh, the head of the political bureau of Hamas, also called on the Palestinian people across the occupied West Bank to stand by Jenin and defend its people to thwart the enemy’s plan.
Fatah political party also said the Israeli occupation is delusional about its ability to kill the resistance spirit through its terror and incursions into the Palestinian camps.
Call for intl. action
The Palestinian Foreign Ministry strongly condemned “the barbaric aggression” and called for urgent international intervention.
The carnage, it added, is part of the official Israeli policy of using military force in dealing with the defenseless Palestinian people instead of political solutions.
The ministry also called on The Hague-based International Criminal Court (ICC) to “end its silence and start holding Israeli war criminals accountable.”
Jordanian Foreign Minister Ayman al-Safadi condemned the Jenin attack, calling on the international community to pressure Tel Aviv to stop its strikes before the situation “explodes.”
In a telephone conversation with Palestinian Authority Civil Affairs Minister Hussein al-Sheikh, Safadi said, “The repeated Israeli attacks on Palestinian cities will only contribute to increasing tension, which is also fueled by illegal Israeli measures that undermine the two-state solution and kill hope in the chances of achieving a just and comprehensive peace.”