Israeli Airstrikes and Ground Raids Escalate in Jenin as West Bank Operation Widens

November 27, 2025 News
Israeli military vehicles in Jenin. (Photo: via social media, QNN)

By Palestine Chronicle Staff  

Israeli airstrikes and helicopter fire supported a rapidly expanding ground operation in Jenin and Tubas on Thursday, as mass arrests, home seizures, and widespread raids triggered rising tension across the northern West Bank.

The northern West Bank witnessed escalating tension on Thursday afternoon, as the Israeli occupation military expanded its ongoing operation across the Jenin area.

Israeli Channel 12 reported that the Air Force struck a target in Jenin shortly after clashes broke out between a Palestinian fighter and an undercover Israeli unit. According to Al-Jazeera, Israeli occupation forces besieged a house in the Jabal Abu Dhahir neighborhood after special units infiltrated the area. Reinforcements were later deployed, while a helicopter circled overhead, and an explosion was heard.

In Tubas, Israeli helicopters reportedly opened fire with machine guns towards residential areas, suggesting a widening of the operation. A drone was also seen over a house surrounded by Israeli forces in Jenin as another explosion was heard.

The Israeli occupation army confirmed that its helicopters were providing support to commando units operating in the northern West Bank. The army also stated that undercover Border Guard units had joined the operation in Jenin.

Medical sources reported that approximately 20 Palestinians were injured, including an elderly man in his eighties, after Israeli forces assaulted residents. More than 75 Palestinians have been detained since the start of the operation, with others forcibly held inside the city.

The military campaign began earlier in five areas across the Tubas governorate. Israeli forces deployed heavy reinforcements, turned Palestinian homes into military barracks, and imposed sweeping restrictions.

Curfew and Raids

On Wednesday, occupation forces imposed a strict curfew on Tubas, al-Far’a camp, and the surrounding villages of Aqaba, Tamoun, and Tayasir, as well as several areas in the northern Jordan Valley. Dozens of homes were raided, and several were seized for military use.

According to the army, the large-scale operation is being conducted in cooperation with the Shin Bet and Border Guard forces, using fighter jets, helicopters, and drones. The occupation army claims the operation is based on intelligence regarding activities linked to Palestinian armed groups and alleged attempts to rebuild resistance brigades.

Israeli media, including Maariv, quoted military sources claiming the campaign responds to an increase in resistance operations and efforts to reorganize armed groups in the West Bank.

The Israeli army stated its forces are searching residential buildings and interrogating Palestinians, vowing to continue operations to prevent what it called the “rooting of terrorism.”

Palestinian Response and Wider West Bank Raids

Hamas condemned the operation, describing it as evidence of an ongoing policy of systematic repression aimed at eliminating Palestinian presence in the West Bank. Islamic Jihad also denounced the assault as part of a broader strategy to force Palestinians from their land.

Elsewhere in the West Bank, Israeli forces stormed the village of Al-Mughayyir, northeast of Ramallah, deploying a drone after raiding a commercial site and detaining its workers.

In the nearby town of Al-Janiya, Palestinian sources reported that Israeli forces uprooted dozens of ancient olive trees to expand the illegal Neria settlement.

(PC, AJA)

Related Articles