Jordan sounds alarm over Israeli incursion into West Bank
Israeli military operations in the occupied West Bank have heightened concerns among Jordanian officials of increasing instability on their border.
![An Israeli army bulldozer digs up a road in the Nur Shams refugee camp in Tulkarem with a Palestinian flag fluttering in the foreground on the second day of a large-scale military operation in the north of the occupied West Bank on August 29, 2024. The death toll climbed on August 29 as the Israeli army said it killed five militants in Tulkarem, bringing to 14 the overall number of people killed since the launch of the West Bank operation the previous day. (Photo by Jaafar ASHTIYEH / AFP) (Photo by JAAFAR A](/sites/default/files/styles/article_hero_medium/public/2024-08/GettyImages-2168232909.jpg?h=dd9cdf43&itok=FaDboJ42)
The Jordanian government expressed on Wednesday its deep concern over the Israeli military campaign in the occupied West Bank, calling it "barbaric aggression."
In a statement posted on X (formerly Twitter) by the Jordanian Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Expatriates, the kingdom condemned Israel's ongoing operations in Jenin, Tulkarem, Tubas, and other northern regions.
At least 16 Palestinians have been killed in Israeli military operations in the West Bank this week, the Associated Press reported.
دانت وزارة الخارجية وشؤون المغتربين بأشد العبارات الاعتداءات الإسرائيلية المتواصلة على الأراضي الفلسطينية المحتلة، وآخرها العدوان الهمجي على جنين وطولكرم وطوباس، شمال الضفة الغربية المحتلة اليوم، والتي أسفرت عن ارتقاء وإصابة العشرات، موضحةً أن الاعتداءات الإسرائيلية الممنهجة على… pic.twitter.com/nz8R10ZJdt
— وزارة الخارجية وشؤون المغتربين الأردنية (@ForeignMinistry) August 28, 2024
Jordan’s Minister of Foreign Affairs, Ayman Safadi, in a separate post on X, called Israel’s actions in the West Bank “a dangerous escalation that must be stopped” and urged the international community to “act firmly and immediately to end this aggression.”
Israel’s expansion of its war against Palestinians in the occupied WB is a dangerous escalation that must be stopped. We again urge the Security Council, the EU, the US & all other members of the Int’l community to act firmly & immediately to end this aggression. The region & its… https://t.co/0uKP8THWfn
— Ayman Safadi (@AymanHsafadi) August 28, 2024
Israel launched coordinated raids in four northern West Bank cities — Jenin, Nablus, Tubas, and Tulkarem — and ordered the evacuation of the Nur Shams refugee camp in the West Bank on Wednesday morning.
The operations and evacuation orders followed security raids targeting armed groups the previous night and raids in Tulkarm on Tuesday.
WAFA reported on Thursday that the operations in the Nur Shams refugee camp, in Tulkarem had resulted in extensive damage, displacing many families. Nihad Al-Shawish, head of the Nur Shams Popular Committee, told WAFA that the situation in the camp was “dire.” Israeli military forces reportedly also carried out a series of arrests and fired at a vehicle on Thursday in the city of Jenin, in the northern West Bank.
The Israeli military stated on Thursday morning that it had killed local militant commander Mohammed Jaber, also known as Abu Shujaa, along with four other militants during an exchange of fire at a mosque in Tulkarem.
The ongoing Israeli military action in the West Bank has heightened concerns in Jordan, which borders the West Bank. Over half of Jordan’s population is of Palestinian origin, and the country has historically been on the receiving end of large numbers of Palestinian refugees.