IDF tears down buildings in Samaria camps to foil ‘reestablishment of terrorist activity’

The IDF noted that the “refugee camps” in Judea and Samaria have become nests for terrorist activity in recent years, with Palestinian gunmen often embedding themselves within civilian areas.

By Akiva Van Koningsveld, Joshua Marks, JNS

The Israel Defense Forces has started the process of demolishing some 90 structures in the Tulkarem and Nur Shams terrorist camps in the western part of Samaria, the military confirmed to JNS on Tuesday.

“The IDF is implementing changes within the camps—including paving routes and roads—to improve mobility for the soldiers and to prevent the reestablishment of terrorist activity in the area,” the army stated, adding that “a row of residences” would soon be knocked down.

“The demolitions follow continuous discussions and examinations, with the number of buildings minimized as much as possible to achieve the necessary security objectives,” according to the IDF, which noted that the decision to demolish the row of homes was “based on operational necessity and was made only after considering alternative options.

“Given the number of buildings slated for demolition, and despite the urgency of continuing counterterrorism operations, the matter has been publicly announced four days in advance,” the statement emphasized.

The IDF noted that the “refugee camps” in Judea and Samaria have become nests for terrorist activity in recent years, with Palestinian gunmen often embedding themselves within civilian areas.

Four months ago, the IDF launched an operation in northern Samaria to “dismantle terror infrastructure sites in the area,” the statement added.

The military launched “Operation Iron Wall” on Jan. 21 in an attempt to neutralize the threat posed by terrorist hotbeds such as Tulkarem. The ongoing counterterrorism operations mark a change in Jerusalem’s security strategy in Samaria, Defense Minister Israel Katz has said.

IDF soldiers will remain in Palestinian areas in northern Samaria after the completion of “Operation Iron Wall” to ensure that the situation “will not return to what it was,” Katz stressed in Jan. 29 comments.

The IDF has intensified its raids in the area following the Feb. 20 failed bus bombings near Tel Aviv. Three empty buses exploded, and bombs were found on two others in what is being investigated as a coordinated terror attack.

At least one of the bombs reportedly bore a note, in Arabic and Hebrew, which stated: “Revenge from the Tulkarem refugee camp.”

Tulkarem—a city that borders the Samaria security barrier— and the nearby Nur Shams camp abut Israel’s densely populated coastal plain east of Netanya and is some eight miles from the Mediterranean Sea.