Israel Pounds Palestine, As Troops, Drones Swoop On West Bank

Drones and artilery pounded Palestinian targets on Monday as Israel embarked on a widespread military operation, as troops remained inside the Jenin Refugee camp. It is the the second of its kind following the second Palestinian Intifada some two decades ago.   

Reports say the israeli army swooped into Jenin with reinforced bulldozers and armoured vehicles backed up by hundreds of soldiers just as drones hovers around as troops move further into the camp. The reports added that power was also cut off during the operation which started midnight Sunday with an airstrike on a marked building said to house attack-planning militants.

Reports also indicated that Israeli soldiers were welcomed by balaclava-wearing Palestinian gunmen who fired back at the soldiers.

According to Palestinian sources, Israeli soldier took over homes and other buildings where they set up sniper post on rooftops. The Health Ministry added that five people have so far been killed in the operation,

“There is bombing from the air and an invasion from the ground,' Mahmoud al-Saadi, director of the Palestinian Red Crescent in Jenin, told AFP.

'Several houses and sites have been bombed... smoke is rising from everywhere.'

In a statement on the attack, spokesperson for Palestinian President, Nabil Abu Rudeineh, insists that even as the brutal attack has destroyed building and taken lives, the Palestinians spirit will not be broken or bowed.

“Our Palestinian people will not kneel, will not surrender, will not raise the white flag, and will remain steadfast on their land in the face of this brutal aggression,” Rudeineh’s statement read in part.

However, Israeli army explained that the operation is part of a set plan to curtail recurrent attacks from the Palestinians. According to its spokesperson, Lt Col Richard Hecht, though minor strikes have been conducted in the past, they were mainly to prepare for Monday’s action. He added that about seven people have lost their lives so far in the operation.

“We’re not planning to hold ground.

“We’re acting against specific targets,” He added.