Jenin refugee camp

Coordinates: 32°27′41″N 35°17′11″E / 32.46139°N 35.28639°E / 32.46139; 35.28639
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Jenin Camp
Arabic: مخيّم جنين
Hebrew: מחנה הפליטים ג'נין
Palestinian refugee camp
View from the Jenin refugee camp in 2011
View from the Jenin refugee camp in 2011
Nicknames: 
  • The Martyr's Capital (by Palestinians)
  • The Hornets' Nest (by Israelis)
Governorate
Jenin Governorate
Area
 • Total473 dunams (0.42 km2 or 0.16 sq mi)
Population
 • Total11,674 (PCBS estimate)
13,000–15,000 (UNRWA estimate)
More than 22,000 (Al Jazeera report)

The Jenin refugee camp (

Arabic: مخيم جنين), is a Palestinian refugee camp located in the city of Jenin in the northern West Bank. It was established in 1953 to house Palestinians who fled or were expelled from their homes by Israeli forces during and in the aftermath of the 1948 Palestine War. The camp has since become a stronghold of Palestinian militants
and has become known as "the martyr's capital" by Palestinians, and "the hornets' nest" by Israelis.

The camp was the location of several incidents relating to the Israeli–Palestinian conflict, most notably the 2002 Battle of Jenin between Israel and Palestinian militants and the 2022 killing of Al Jazeera journalist Shireen Abu Akleh, and remains the site of frequent clashes between Israeli forces and Palestinians.

The camp has a high population density, estimated at 33,000/km2 (85,000/sq mi) by the UNRWA. Refugees in the camp face difficult living conditions, which are caused in part by Israeli restrictions. The camp has a high unemployment rate compared to the rest of the West Bank, and many refugees live in substandard shelters, with poor sewage networks and common shortages in water and electricity.

History

Establishment and Israeli occupation

The Jenin refugee camp was formally established in 1953 after a

dunams of land that was leased to the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA) for an extended period of time,[2] and was later expanded to 473 dunams (0.42 km2).[3]

The camp is located in the

Arabic: مرج ابن عامر), and to its east is Jordan Valley. The camp and the entirety of the West Bank was under Jordanian control at the time of its establishment, following the Jordanian annexation of the West Bank that took place in 1950.[4]

Following the defeat of the Arab Armies in the

Israeli invasion of southern Lebanon in 1982, the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) was forced out of the country, settling in Tunisia.[6] However, many PLO militants chose to return to the occupied Palestinian territories, leading to the emergence of a number of militant groups, a number of which were centered in the vicinity of Jenin. These groups included the 'Black Panthers' of Fatah and the 'Red Eagles' of the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP).[2]

The residents of the Jenin camp participated in the First Intifada, a major Palestinian uprising against Israel that took place in the late 1980s and early 1990s.[7] During that intifada, the camp was the target of several Israeli raids conducted in search of militants.[2] The Oslo Accords, signed at the end of the First Intifada, transferred the control and administration of the camp to the then-newly established Palestinian National Authority (PA).[8]

Second Intifada and Battle of Jenin

Main article: Battle of Jenin (2002)
Israeli forces in the Jenin Camp during the Battle of Jenin; 2002

The Jenin camp was heavily involved the Second Intifada, another major Palestinian uprising against Israel that took place in the early 2000s. In April 2002, after a string of Palestinian suicide attacks, Israeli forces entered the camp as part of Operation Defensive Shield, commencing the Battle of Jenin. Israel claimed that the camp was a hotbed of Palestinian militancy, and prevented relief workers and reporters from entering the camp, claiming that booby traps set up by the Palestinians were a serious concern. Palestinians later acknowledged that explosives were placed throughout the camp.[9][10]

The battle lasted for ten days between 1 April and 11 April, and Israel began withdrawing its troops on 18 April. Over the course of the battle, over 400 homes were destroyed, and hundreds more were severely damaged.[11] A UN envoy likened the camp to an earthquake zone,[12] as did a reporter for the Associated Press who later visited the camp.[13] The BBC reported that ten percent of the camp was "virtually rubbed out by a dozen armored Israeli bulldozers".[14]

A report by the

Israeli housing minister offered to rebuild the camp at a nearby location with enlarged roads. However, the camp's residents rejected the proposal, which they saw as an attempt to erase the political symbolism of Palestinian refugee camps, whose existence they see as a living testament to the Nakba.[17] By 2005, the UNRWA had completed the reconstruction of the camp, in an operation that was described as "the largest humanitarian intervention during the Second Intifada". However, this rebuild has been criticized by the camp's residents, who said that the new network of roads exposed them to greater violence and insecurity as it made it easier for Israeli jeeps and tanks to enter the camp.[18]

Subsequent violence

The Jenin camp is located in Area A of the West Bank, which is under de jure civil and security control by the Palestinian National Authority.[8] However, Israeli forces frequently carry out incursions into the camp with the declared objective of conducting counter-terrorism operations. However, Palestinians say that the Israeli forces target not only militants but also noncombatant civilians, with a paramedic telling CNN that he did not feel safe "even in uniform".[19] These near-daily Israeli raids mostly occur during the night, and lead to clashes with militants.[20][21]

In September 2021, Ayham Kamamji and Monadel Nafe'at, the final two prisoners at large after the

shot dead in a targeted attack by Israeli forces".[25]

The year 2023 saw an increase in the number and size of Israeli incursions to the camp. In January, the Israeli military

Israel–Hamas war that began in October, Israeli forces launched multiple ground incursions into the camp.[33][34]

On January 6, 2024, the Israeli army killed seven Palestinians in an airstrike.[35]

Palestinian militancy

See also: Palestinian political violence
Graffiti in the Jenin Camp in 2011: "Not to forget.."

The Jenin camp has become a center of Palestinian militancy. The al-Quds Brigades of the Palestinian Islamic Jihad (PIJ) and the al-Aqsa Martyrs' Brigades of Fatah are the two most prominent armed groups in the camp, while the Izz ad-Din al-Qassam Brigades of Hamas have recently begun to maintain a more viable presence.[36] These armed groups act as the sole form of resistance and protection for the population from the Israeli army, which regularly comes in and conducts raids, killing civilians, and taking many prisoners.

Armed militants enjoy high levels of support amongst the residents of the camp, who condemn the Palestinian Authority as "collaborators with the occupation".[13][37] The camp is sometimes referred to by Palestinians as "the martyrs' capital"[38] and by the Israeli military as "the hornets' nest.".[36] In January 2023, thirty five Palestinians were killed in the West Bank in the context of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, twenty of whom were from the Jenin camp.[39]

In contrast, the Palestinian Authority's control over the camp has been relatively weak due to its location far away from Ramallah, the de facto capital of the PA.[40] In fact, PA forces seldom enter the camp. Israel has blamed the PA for its "incompetence," which has led to the "deterioration of security conditions". However, the PA has rejected these claims, criticizing Israel for "deliberately acting to weaken it",[41] and saying that Israeli actions are to blame for Palestinian violence.[42]

The Jenin Battalion, also known as the Jenin Brigades (Arabic: كتيبة جنين), is a Palestinian armed group that has recently appeared in the Jenin camp. Initially founded by the PIJ in 2021 to serve as a local branch for the al-Quds Brigades,[43][44] it has developed into an affiliation of armed militants from several factions, similar to the Lion's Den group in Nablus.[45] According to Al-Monitor, the two groups maintain high coordination with each other.[46] The group has a Telegram account with around 66,600 subscribers as of August 15, 2023.[47] According to Moein Odeh, an expert on Palestinian affairs, the Jenin Brigades consist of teenagers and men in their early twenties and do not have a clear hierarchical structure of command, making it difficult to track down members. Observers say that the Jenin Brigades and other similar groups formed amidst "a complete loss of confidence in the Palestinian political leadership".[42]

Organisation

UNRWA Health Center in the Jenin Camp; 2011

The Jenin camp houses

Carmel mountains, areas relatively close to the camp's location, allowing the camp's refugees to maintain close ties to their relatives across the Green Line.[2][48] The Palestinian Central Bureau of Statistics (PCBS) estimates that the population of the Jenin camp will reach 11,674 people by June 2023,[49] while Al Jazeera reports that the camp has a population of more than 22,000 refugees.[50] However, many other sources report a figure between 13,000 and 15,000 refugees,[51][52] which gives a population density closer to the UNRWA estimate of 33,000/km2.[1] These differences in population counts stem from the fact that many refugees left the camp in the aftermath of the Second Intifada but are still registered refugees,[53] and the fact that a number of registered households live outside formal camp boundaries.[52]

During the first years of the Jenin camp, refugees lived at former

Ottoman period, then at tents provided by the UNRWA. It wasn't until a few years later that the camp's residents began building mud houses to replace their tents, while concrete houses did not appear until the 1970s.[54] Even today, the camp's residents face problems due to poor sewage networks,[55] and many live in shelters that lack appropriate lighting and ventilation. Moreover, water and electricity shortages have become increasingly common in recent years, particularly in the summer.[53]

The Jezreel Valley to the north of the Jenin camp

In the camp, there is one health center, administered by the UNRWA, and there are five schools, built with local support from a

West Bank Wall and the implementation of the permit regime, which mandates Palestinians to obtain a number of separate permits, issued by the Israeli administration in the West Bank, for a wide range of activities.[57]

Due to its proximity to the Jezreel Valley, the camp has one of the largest fertile plains in Palestine, and is sometimes called the "breadbasket of the West Bank". However, Israeli restrictions have blocked agricultural sales inside Israel, which has led to the devaluation of crops.[58]

See also

References

  1. ^ a b "Jenin Camp". UNRWA. Retrieved 2023-02-05.
  2. ^ a b c d Bank, Qassam Muaddi ــ West (2022-04-20). "Jenin refugee camp: The battle that never ended". The New Arab. Retrieved 2023-02-05.
  3. ^ "مخيم جنين يواصل استنزاف الاحتلال.. "لا يعرف الراية البيضاء"" [The Jenin Camp continues exhausting the occupation.. It doesn't know the white flag]. عربي21 (in Arabic). 2023-01-30. Retrieved 2023-02-07. The first tent was erected in the Jenin camp ... on an area of 372 dunams, before it was expanded to 473 dunams.[permanent dead link]
  4. ^ "جنين.. مدينة لم تستسلم لأي محتل منذ القدم ورأس الحربة في مثلث الرعب لإسرائيل" [Jenin... a city that did not capitulate to any occupier since antiquity and the head of the Israeli fear triangulum]. 1-a1072.azureedge.net (in Arabic). Retrieved 2023-02-06. In 1949, the city came under Jordanian rule ... and remained so until its occupation in the 1967 war ... The Jordan Valley borders the camp from the East,and the Jezreel valley from the North ... The Jenin camp is in the West of the city.
  5. ^ "تاريخ جنين الثوري كما يرويه شيوخها" [Jenin's revolutionary history as told by its elders]. نون بوست (in Arabic). 2021-10-05. Retrieved 2023-02-06. Jenin fell under Israeli occupation after the 1967 war.
  6. ^ Khalidi, Rashid – The Iron Cage: The Story of the Palestinian Struggle for Statehood, Oneworld, 2006
  7. ^ Turabi, Muhammad Ahmed. "مخيم جنين... حكاية مخيَّم عاش انتفاضة الحجارة" [The Jenin camp... The story of a camp that lived the Stone (First) Intifada]. لاجئ نت (in Arabic). Retrieved 2023-02-07.
  8. ^ a b The demise of the Oslo process. Joel Beinin, MERIP, 26 March 1999.
  9. ISSN 0362-4331. Archived
    from the original on 2021-12-25. Retrieved 2021-12-25.
  10. ^ "Jenin camp situation 'horrendous'". 2002-04-15. Archived from the original on 2021-12-25. Retrieved 2021-12-25.
  11. ^ Israel, the Occupied West Bank and Gaza Strip, and the Palestinian Authority Territories Jenin: Idf Military Operations. Human Rights Watch. Archived from the original on 2023-02-01. Retrieved 2021-12-25.
  12. ^ "Jenin camp 'horrific beyond belief'". 2002-04-18. Archived from the original on 2021-12-25. Retrieved 2021-12-25.
  13. ^ a b "In Jenin refugee camp, anger is directed at both Israel and Palestinian Authority". The National. Associated Press. 2022-04-16. Retrieved 2023-02-11.
  14. ^ "Jenin rises from the dirt". 2003-06-24. Retrieved 2023-02-11.
  15. ISSN 0362-4331. Archived
    from the original on 2019-12-11. Retrieved 2021-12-25.
  16. ^ "Jenin Camp". UNRWA. Archived from the original on 2020-08-06. Retrieved 2020-07-06.
  17. ^ Sa'di and Abu-Lughod, 2007, pp. 128–129.
  18. JSTOR 10.1525/jps.2012.xli.2.44
    – via JSTOR.
  19. ^ a b Yooll, Vasco Cotovio,Nic Robertson,Kareem Khadder,Luis-Graham (2023-02-04). "Traumatized and afraid, Jenin residents are still reeling from Israeli raid". CNN. Retrieved 2023-02-07.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  20. ^ AFP, Staff Writer With (2022-09-28). "Four Killed in Israel Jenin Raid: Palestinian Ministry". The Defense Post. Retrieved 2023-02-18.
  21. ^ "Palestinians Say Israeli Troops Kill 9 in West Bank Raid". VOA. 26 January 2023. Retrieved 2023-02-18.
  22. ^ Gross, Judah Ari; staff, T. O. I. "Israeli forces nab final 2 Palestinian fugitives in Jenin, ending jailbreak saga". www.timesofisrael.com. Retrieved 2023-02-07.
  23. ^ Tahhan, Zena Al. "Shireen Abu Akleh: Al Jazeera reporter killed by Israeli forces". www.aljazeera.com. Retrieved 2023-02-07.
  24. ^ Heyman, Taylor (2022-09-05). "Shireen Abu Akleh probably killed by soldier, Israeli military report finds". The National. Retrieved 2023-02-07.
  25. ^ Featherstone, Zeena Saifi,Eliza Mackintosh,Celine Alkhaldi,Kareem Khadder,Katie Polglase,Gianluca Mezzofiore,Abeer Salman,Oscar (2022-05-24). "'They were shooting directly at the journalists': New evidence suggests Shireen Abu Akleh was killed in targeted attack by Israeli forces". CNN. Retrieved 2023-02-07.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  26. ^ "Israeli forces kill nine in Jenin clash with Palestinian gunmen, marking West Bank's deadliest day in over a year". CNN. 26 January 2023. Archived from the original on 26 January 2023. Retrieved 26 January 2023.
  27. ^ "Jenin operation: 'We eliminated a ticking time-bomb' says senior IDF officer". 26 January 2023. Archived from the original on 27 January 2023. Retrieved 27 January 2023.
  28. ^ "PA says it is halting security coordination with Israel". 26 January 2023. Archived from the original on 27 January 2023. Retrieved 27 January 2023.
  29. ISSN 0261-3077
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  31. ^ "Jenin: Israeli military launches major operation in West Bank city". BBC News. 2023-07-02.
  32. ^ "United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs - occupied Palestinian territory | Israeli forces operation in Jenin: 40 per cent of households in Jenin Refugee Camp still lack access to water. as of 17:00 Jerusalem time, 11 July 2023". United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs - occupied Palestinian territory. 2023-07-11. Retrieved 2024-01-07.
  33. ^ Sullivan, Becky; Harbage, Claire (2023-10-30). "In the West Bank city of Jenin, Israeli raids and strikes leave Palestinians wary". NPR. Retrieved 2023-11-18.
  34. ^ "Israeli forces conduct a deadly raid on Palestinian refugee camp in Jenin". NBC News. Retrieved 2023-11-18.
  35. ^ "At least nine Palestinians, two Israelis killed in West Bank violence". Al Jazeera. Retrieved 2024-01-07.
  36. ^ a b c "Israel's hornets' nest – World – Al-Ahram Weekly". Ahram Online. Retrieved 2023-02-06.
  37. ^ "Palestinian PM Makes Extremely Rare Visit to Jenin Refugee Camp, Visits Militants' Mourning Families". Haaretz. Retrieved 2023-02-11.
  38. ^ "i24NEWS". www.i24news.tv. 10 April 2022. Retrieved 2023-02-05.
  39. ^ "Israel has killed 35 Palestinians, including 8 children, in January 2023, says MoH". WAFA News Agency.
  40. ^ Bank, Qassam Muaddi ــ West (2021-10-12). "Jenin: The centre of a nascent Palestinian armed resistance?". The New Arab. Retrieved 2023-02-17.
  41. ^ Iraqi, Amjad (2022-09-26). "'We built the Palestinian Authority with blood. We won't give up on it'". +972 Magazine. Retrieved 2023-02-17.
  42. ^ a b "Lions' Den and Other Palestinian Groups Are Endless Headache for Israel and PA". The Media Line. 2022-10-13. Retrieved 2023-02-18.
  43. ^ "Inside the "Wasps' Nest": the rise of the Jenin Brigade". Mondoweiss. 2022-11-08. Retrieved 2023-02-08.
  44. ^ ""كتيبة جنين": إعادة تنظيم هيكلية المقاومة في الضفة" [Jenin Battalion: "Reorganizing the resistance in the West Bank"]. Alkhanadeq (in Arabic). Retrieved 2023-02-17. The Jenin Battalion that began ... during the "Sword of Jerusalem" battle
  45. ^ "Two Palestinian Militants Killed in West Bank Clashes With Israeli Forces". Haaretz. Retrieved 2023-02-08.
  46. ^ "More armed Palestinian groups in West Bank – Al-Monitor: Independent, trusted coverage of the Middle East". www.al-monitor.com. 21 November 2022. Retrieved 2023-02-18.
  47. ^ "كتيبة جنين الإعلام الحربي". Telegram. Retrieved 2023-08-13.
  48. ^ "مخيم جنين للاجئين" [Jenin refugee camp]. الأونروا (in Arabic). Retrieved 2023-02-08. The residents of the camp descend from the Carmel region in Haifa and the Carmel Mountains, and because the camp is close to its residents' original villages, a lot of them maintain close ties with their relatives inside the Green Line.
  49. ^ "PCBS | Projected Mid -Year Population for Jenin Governorate by Locality 2017–2026". www.pcbs.gov.ps. Retrieved 2023-02-06.
  50. ^ Tahhan, Zena Al. "Jenin refugee camp residents defiant after deadly Israeli assault". www.aljazeera.com. Retrieved 2023-02-06.
  51. ^ niko (2022-04-16). "Israeli Raids on Jenin Refugee Camp Leave Many Dead, Dozens Shot". UNICORN RIOT. Retrieved 2023-02-06.
  52. ^ a b c "Who lives in Jenin refugee camp? – Israel | ReliefWeb". reliefweb.int. 14 April 2002. Retrieved 2023-02-08.
  53. ^ a b "UNRWA Sites – Jenin Refugee Camp" (PDF).
  54. ^ Anonymous (2020-10-23). "The lost potential of Jenin". The Electronic Intifada. Retrieved 2023-02-19.
  55. S2CID 154789793
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  56. ^ "مخيم جنين" [Jenin Camp]. Palestine Online (in Arabic). 2022-12-27. Retrieved 2023-02-18. And in the camp, there are five schools built with local support from the "Social Charity Organization" in Nablus.
  57. ^ "Jenin Camp". UNRWA. Retrieved 2023-02-07.
  58. ^ "Raids, siege and a manhunt: Israel ramps up aggressions against Jenin". Middle East Eye. Retrieved 2023-02-17.


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