Israeli Forces Demolish Camps in West Bank

The narrow alleyways of Tulkarem’s refugee camps in the occupied West Bank have given way to wide concrete arteries as Israeli military bulldozers continue their unprecedented demolition campaign, leaving thousands of Palestinian refugees fearing the permanent loss of both their homes and their legal status.

A Trail of Destruction
Over the past week, Israeli forces have transformed the urban landscape of two refugee camps in Tulkarem, displacing at least 40,000 residents according to UN estimates. The military operation, dubbed “Iron Wall,” has seen entire neighborhoods reduced to rubble, with 104 more buildings slated for demolition this week.

Abd al-Rahman Ajaj, 62, returned to find his family home flattened without warning. “We came back to collect our belongings and found nothing standing,” the second-generation refugee told AFP. His parents fled what is now the Israeli city of Netanya during the 1948 war, and like many in the camps, he now faces the bitter irony of experiencing displacement for a second time.

Changing the Face of the Camps
The Israeli army claims the demolitions serve operational needs, creating wide access routes for military vehicles in areas they describe as strongholds of Palestinian armed groups. But residents and rights organizations see a more sinister purpose.

Three new military roads now cut through the once-dense warren of homes that grew organically over decades as refugee families expanded vertically, adding floors to accommodate new generations. Piles of concrete rubble line these freshly cleared routes like grim monuments to lost neighborhoods.

“The aim goes beyond military necessity,” said Suleiman al-Zuheiri, a resident and community advocate in nearby Nur Shams camp. “They want to erase the very concept of refugee camps and with it, our right of return.”

The Right of Return Controversy
The demolition campaign touches on one of the most sensitive issues in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. Palestinian refugees and their descendants – numbering in the millions across the region – maintain the right to return to lands lost in 1948, a principle Israel firmly rejects as demographic suicide.

The current Israeli government, including far-right ministers who advocate West Bank annexation, has taken an especially hard line. By physically erasing the camps’ distinctive layout and transforming them into regular urban neighborhoods, critics argue Israel seeks to undermine refugees’ special status.

Human Cost Mounts
Omar Owfi, 66, made two desperate trips under military watch to salvage belongings from his endangered home. “They don’t care what these houses mean to us,” he said, describing generations of memories reduced to rubble. “We’ve lost everything.”

The destruction follows a pattern seen earlier in Jenin, where similar operations displaced thousands. Each demolished multi-story building typically housed six or more families, creating a cascading housing crisis as displaced residents crowd with relatives or seek shelter in already overcrowded areas.

Legal Challenges Emerge
On Thursday, the Israeli Supreme Court temporarily froze further demolitions in Tulkarem camp following a petition by Palestinian rights group Adalah. The state now has two months to justify the campaign, though much of the physical damage remains irreversible.

As the legal process unfolds, military operations continue. During AFP’s visit, gunfire echoed through the camps while a massive explosion sent a dust plume skyward – another building reportedly demolished by controlled detonation. The acrid smell of gunpowder hung over residents scrambling to salvage possessions under soldiers’ watchful eyes.

Generational Trauma Resurfaces
For older refugees like Ajaj, the current displacement evokes painful family histories. “My parents thought their 1948 exile would be temporary,” he said. “Now I understand how they felt.” His words underscore the intergenerational nature of Palestinian displacement, with each new upheaval reopening old wounds.

As bulldozers reshape the West Bank’s physical and political landscape, the international community watches closely. The camps’ transformation raises profound questions about the future of refugee rights and the viability of a two-state solution, even as immediate humanitarian needs go unmet.