Israeli forces uses ‘lethal’ warfare tactics in West Bank

The United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) has warned that Israeli forces are using “lethal war-like tactics”, including airstrikes, in the occupied West Bank, with people being killed, injured, displaced or deprived of access to basic services.

The office explained in a statement that Israeli military operations have now resumed in Tulkarm governorate, while continuing in Jenin governorate, adding that the United Nations has recorded more than 20 deaths over the past week, including children.

The statement added that OCHA has mobilized organizations from the UN and beyond to assess the damage and humanitarian needs on the ground, adding that during a visit to Tulkarm on Saturday, it was confirmed that 120 people, including more than 40 children, had been displaced and their homes destroyed.

At the time of the assessment, 13,000 people in Nur Shams refugee camp experienced water cut-offs, attributed to damages caused to the water network, and sewage overflow was observed, OCHA said.

The UN teams noticed that the residents were traumatized and in need of psychosocial support, the office said, stressing that it triggered humanitarian response to the identified needs.

Multiple organizations mobilized by OCHA were set to carry out an assessment in Jenin but were denied access by the Israeli authorities, it added.

OCHA warns that access impediments are impacting the ability to provide meaningful humanitarian response. The movement of ambulances and medical teams has been impeded and delayed since the onset of the now-week-long operation.

Since the beginning of the Israeli aggression on Wednesday, 34 Palestinians have been martyred in the West Bank. This brings the total number of martyrs in the West Bank since the start of the aggression on the Gaza Strip on Oct. 7 to 685.