Dr. Jamal Harfoush: These operations are part of a broader policy aimed at reshaping the landscape in the West Bank through the gradual displacement of the population.

Khalil Shaheen: What is happening is part of a long-term political plan aimed at annexation and imposing Israeli sovereignty over large parts of the West Bank

Dr. Raed Al-Dabai: The current escalation is not a response to a real security threat, but rather a political decision that serves the agenda of the right-wing government in Israel

Muhammad Hawash: Israel sends a message to the Arab Summit through its military operations that it is the only party that decides the fate of the Palestinians

Dr. Tamara Haddad: The occupation deploys tanks to use the security cover as a tool to implement its project that sees the West Bank as an integral part of the “Israeli biblical state”

Sari Samour: Deploying tanks in a refugee camp carries a strategic dimension linked to a broader plan targeting the Palestinian refugee issue

Jenin camp is witnessing a new escalation with its storming by Israeli tanks, in a move that carries dimensions that go beyond the security dimension to broader political and strategic calculations, warning of the escalation rolling to the rest of the West Bank.

In separate interviews with “I”, writers, political analysts and university professors believe that this new Israeli escalation reflects a shift in the nature of Israeli military operations in the West Bank, where Tel Aviv is using military force to reshape the field scene, in an attempt to terrorize the population and undermine any potential resistance. It reflects Israel’s efforts to strengthen its influence and reduce the powers of the Palestinian Authority, with fears of waves of forced displacement rising.

The book and university professors explain that these moves come at a sensitive time domestically, as the Israeli government led by Benjamin Netanyahu seeks to achieve political gains by showing off its strength and winning the support of right-wing circles.

A strategic shift in the nature of Israeli military operations

Professor Dr. Jamal Harfoush, Professor of Scientific Research Methods and Political Studies at the University of the Academic Research Center in Brazil, believes that this Israeli tank invasion of the Jenin camp represents a “strategic shift in the nature of Israeli military operations,” as it seeks to achieve several goals by bringing tanks into the camp, which go beyond the military dimension to include political, security, and psychological aspects.

According to Harfoush, Israel is trying to impose a new reality on the ground, publicly displaying its power to intimidate the population, which could increase pressure on the resistance and undermine its popular support.

On the political level, Harfoush confirms that this escalation puts the Palestinian Authority in a critical position, as it appears unable to protect the Jenin camp, which may provoke a wave of popular anger and prompt demands to reconsider relations with the occupation.

On the other hand, Harfoush confirms that the military escalation serves the Israeli government internally, as Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu seeks to unify the ranks of the ruling coalition and gain popular support by escalating confrontations with the Palestinians.

Harfoush points out that the psychological and social aspect plays a major role in this attack, as Israel seeks to spread terror among the people of Jenin camp and push them not to return to the camp and stop their support for the resistance.

"These operations are not just military confrontations, but rather part of a broader policy aimed at reshaping the landscape in the West Bank through the gradual displacement of the population," Harfoush says.

Harfoush believes that this tank incursion into the Jenin camp is a test of Arab and international reactions, explaining that "if there is no firm reaction from the international community, we may witness the extension of this policy to other areas, which opens the door to a broad escalation in the West Bank."

Harfoush believes that the occupation's continued use of tanks and armored vehicles will lead to large-scale invasion campaigns that may target other camps such as Tulkarm and Nablus, as well as an increase in field assassinations. This may lead to a further explosion of the field situation and consequently an increase in resistance activities and their expansion to other areas in the West Bank, which may lead to a new popular uprising.

Harfoush believes that the occupation may resort to imposing collective punishments such as cutting off electricity and water and besieging areas as an additional tool of pressure on the population. It may also try to "ignite internal strife among the Palestinian factions to prevent them from uniting in confronting the occupation."

Harfoush stresses that the decisive factor now is the ability of the Palestinian people and their factions to confront these policies and impose new equations that force the occupation to reconsider its calculations.

Direct and indirect goals

Writer and political analyst Khalil Shaheen asserts that the ongoing Israeli military operations in the northern West Bank for more than a month, and the long closures through the deployment of more than 900 checkpoints, have direct and indirect goals that go beyond mere military confrontations, as they aim to displace the Palestinian population and dismantle the camps, as part of a broader plan to control the region.

One of the direct goals of the Israeli military campaign, according to Shaheen, is internal forced displacement, which is taking place in the camps of the northern West Bank, especially in Jenin, where estimates indicate that more than 40,000 Palestinians have been displaced.

Shaheen points out that the continued prevention of displaced persons from returning to their homes leads to their forced distribution in the centers of neighboring cities and villages, which contributes to the fragmentation of the social fabric and the weakening of family and tribal ties that have long distinguished these communities.

Shaheen believes that one of the main goals of these operations is to eliminate the spatial space of the camps, which represent a symbol of the Palestinian refugee issue, as the camps are linked to the reality of displacement since the Nakba of 1948, and to the idea of return guaranteed by United Nations resolutions.

Shaheen points out that this trend coincides with increasing Israeli attempts, with American support, to end UNRWA, which threatens to strip refugees of basic services and weaken the political dimension of the issue.

Estimates confirm, according to Shaheen, that the occupation forces completely destroyed about 120 homes in the Jenin camp, in addition to the partial damage of dozens of homes and facilities, as part of a strategy aimed at destroying the infrastructure of the camps and paving new roads, amid talk of a plan to create a corridor similar to the “Netzarim Corridor” in Gaza, cutting through the camps and separating them from each other, which confirms Israel’s efforts to destroy the idea of the spatial space for refugees.

Shaheen points out that despite the camps being free of any major armed confrontation, Israel has sent tanks into Palestinian cities and camps as a measure that carries political dimensions more than a military necessity. On the one hand, the occupation seeks to satisfy extremist circles and settlers, and on the other hand, it aims to create a state of deterrence, in addition to enabling the army to establish permanent centers within Area A, which is supposed to be under the control of the Palestinian Authority, which further reduces its powers and weakens it in terms of security.

long term political plan

Shaheen points out that what is happening now is not just military operations, but rather part of a long-term political plan that aims to annex and impose Israeli sovereignty over large parts of the West Bank, especially its northwest.

Shaheen explains that the statements of Israeli Energy Minister Eli Cohen regarding the annexation of the West Bank, and reports indicating intentions to gradually annex areas, reflect a strategic direction by the Israeli government, especially in light of the possible support of the administration of US President Donald Trump for these steps.

Shaheen confirms that the Israeli plan is moving towards expanding settlements and legalizing random outposts that have been established since October 7, 2023, in addition to displacing Bedouin and pastoral communities, especially in the Jordan Valley and areas south of Hebron.

Shaheen believes that this approach seeks to dismember the West Bank and transform the Palestinian Authority from a political entity into mere weak local administrations, which practically eliminates any chance of establishing an independent Palestinian state.

In the face of these challenges, Shaheen believes that the Palestinians must adopt new strategies based on strengthening steadfastness and struggling to preserve Palestinian powers in every inch of the land, instead of betting on understandings with the occupation.

Shaheen calls for ending the Palestinian division and forming a unified national leadership, especially in the villages and towns, that is capable of confronting Israeli plans, in light of the serious existential threats facing the Palestinian cause.

Actual return to direct military occupation of the entire West Bank

The head of the Political Science Department at An-Najah National University, Dr. Raed Al-Dabai, believes that the Israeli tanks’ storming of the Jenin camp goes beyond being a security operation or limited aggression, but rather represents an actual return to direct military occupation of the entire West Bank.

Al-Dabai explains that what is happening brings to mind the situation before the signing of the Oslo Accords in 1993, after Israel no longer adhered to any previous security arrangements, and began to deal with the West Bank as areas not subject to any international agreements, which means an actual undermining of the role of the Palestinian Authority in managing areas classified as (A).

Al-Dabai points out that targeting refugee camps, especially Jenin camp, is part of a systematic policy aimed at creating an unlivable environment within these camps, which pushes their residents to forced or voluntary migration.

Al-Dabai explains that Israel is working to remove the symbolism of the Palestinian camps linked to the right of return and the implementation of UN Resolution 194, which is consistent with previous statements by former Israeli Prime Minister Naftali Bennett in 2014, when he said: “We must make the lives of the Palestinians unbearable until they leave voluntarily.”

Al-Dabai explains that Israel relies in its current operations on the "southern suburb doctrine," which it previously used in the war on Lebanon in 2006, when it destroyed Hezbollah's infrastructure in the southern suburb of Beirut with the aim of preventing life from returning to normal.

Al-Dabai points out that this doctrine is now being applied in the West Bank by destroying the infrastructure of Palestinian camps and cities, including homes, streets, water and electricity networks, and targeting the local economy, with the aim of preventing any economic stability for the Palestinians, which constitutes additional pressure to push them towards emigration.

Al-Dabai stresses that the current Israeli military escalation is not a response to a real security threat, but rather an internal political decision that serves the agenda of the far-right government led by Benjamin Netanyahu, which seeks to escalate the situation militarily to strengthen its extremist settlement and religious policies.

Al-Dabai explains that figures such as Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich, whom he described as the de facto ruler of the West Bank, are pushing for systematic escalation to impose a new reality represented by expanding settlements, demolishing villages and camps, and achieving the project of complete annexation of the West Bank under the slogan “more land for Jews and less Arabs.”

Al-Dabai warns that the continuation of these policies will lead to a comprehensive invasion of the West Bank, with a focus on direct military control over Palestinian cities and imposing a severe siege on the camps, which are considered symbolic centers for the right of return.

Al-Dabai asserts that Israel may consider what is happening in Jenin a model for expanding its operations in other cities, all the way to the political decision-making center in Ramallah.

The goal is to achieve a "silent mass displacement."

Al-Dabai explains that these policies seek to achieve “silent mass displacement” through economic and military pressures, allowing settlers to commit crimes without accountability, and using excessive force to create an unlivable environment that pushes Palestinians to voluntarily emigrate.

Al-Dabai stresses that these practices may lead to an explosion of the situation, pointing out that the increase in the number of martyrs, arrests, and systematic destruction may ignite a new Palestinian uprising, and things may reach the point of escalating anger internally in 1948, leading to widespread protests and internal unrest inside Israel.

He believes that the most likely scenario is the extension of Israeli military operations to other Palestinian cities, as Israel no longer needs security pretexts to justify its aggression, but rather is making political decisions that are wrapped in security justifications, within the framework of a clear plan to end the Palestinian presence in the West Bank.

Undermining the legal foundations of the refugee issue

Writer and political analyst Muhammad Hawash confirms that the entry of Israeli tanks into the northern West Bank, specifically Jenin, does not carry any new military objectives, as Israel is not facing an armed army there, but rather Palestinian citizens who cling to their land and rights.

Hawash explains that these military moves aim to impose Israeli hegemony over the West Bank and to send a political message that “the language of force is the only one” that Israel uses to achieve its strategic goals in the region.

Hawash points out that Israel seeks, through its military operations, to undermine the legal foundations of the Palestinian refugee issue, which is based on UN resolutions regarding the right of return and the rights of refugees to their properties within the territories occupied in 1948.

Hawash explains that one of the methods that Israel follows in this context is targeting the Palestinian camps, considering them symbols of the refugee issue, as it promotes the existence of armed resistance within them to justify the destruction operations, which is considered part of the attempts to gradually liquidate the issue.

Hawash points out that Israel is taking legal measures to prevent the work of the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA), in a move that reinforces efforts to cancel international recognition of the status of Palestinian refugees.

Hawash believes that the political assessments that Israel is adopting in its current military campaign in the northern West Bank are not accurate, as it may be able to temporarily control some areas, but it will not be able to prevent the Palestinians from returning and rebuilding their camps. What is happening is a “battle of wills,” as Israel seeks to impose a new reality in the West Bank, while the Palestinians reject these plans and cling to their land.

Hawash points out that what is happening aims to send multiple messages, including terrorizing the Palestinians and emphasizing that the future of the West Bank is determined by Israel alone, not the Palestinians, nor even the international community or Arab summits.

Hawash believes that the Israeli military movements may be a message directed to the upcoming Arab summit, which will discuss a political initiative that adheres to the two-state solution and ending the occupation, and that Israel seeks through its field operations to confirm that it is the only party that decides the fate of the Palestinians, and not any international initiatives or decisions.

Attempting to impose a new reality in the West Bank

Hawash stresses that the current Israeli government is trying to impose a new reality in the West Bank through a military escalation that has political dimensions, including satisfying the extreme Israeli right, which calls for complete control over the West Bank and the dispossession of Palestinians from their lands.

Hawash warns that Israel is making a strategic mistake when it believes it can displace Palestinians or force them to leave their lands, stressing that the number of Palestinians today exceeds seven million in historical Palestine, which makes any attempts to deport them impossible to achieve.

Permanent military deployment to strengthen security grip on the West Bank

Writer and political researcher Dr. Tamara Haddad explains that the presence of Israeli tanks in Jenin since 2000 reflects a permanent military positioning aimed at strengthening the heavy security grip on the West Bank.

Haddad points out that the occupation is deploying tanks to use the security cover and security justifications as a tool to implement its political project, considering that this presence is not merely a security measure but rather part of a biblical project that sees the West Bank as an integral part of the “biblical Israeli state.”

Haddad asserts that the continued presence of tanks in Jenin indicates that the occupation is dealing with the West Bank as a main front, not just the Gaza Strip, despite the absence of an actual war or resistance operations that would require such an intensive military deployment.

Haddad explains that the main goal is not only to eliminate what the occupation calls “terrorism” or Islamic movements, but to use this security justification as a cover to impose a new political reality on the ground, and to transform the West Bank into an arena for sustainable confrontation.

Haddad believes that the "Iron Wall" operation in the northern West Bank will not stop at Jenin, but will gradually expand to the rest of the West Bank.

Ending the symbolism of camps as refugee centers

Haddad points out that the occupation aims to end the symbolism of the Palestinian camps as refugee centers and restructure them geographically, so that they become neighborhoods within cities, which contributes to ending the components of life in them and forcing their residents to be forcibly displaced to other areas.

Haddad draws attention to the statements of Israeli Defense Minister Yisrael Katz, who confirmed that the occupation will not allow the return of displaced camp residents, and that the Israeli army will remain in the West Bank until 2026, which reflects the occupation’s intention to deal with the West Bank as a central front in its military strategy.

Haddad stresses that the occupation seeks to impose forced coexistence between Palestinians and settlers, not only in areas classified as “C” or “B,” but even in areas “A” controlled by the Palestinian Authority, which means that the Israeli army will be stationed inside major Palestinian cities, and the sight of tanks will become a normal part of the daily lives of Palestinians.

Haddad asserts that these measures reflect the occupation's intention to end the Oslo Accords and all agreements sponsored by the United States, with the aim of eliminating any political solution, whether the two-state solution or any other formula that leads to the establishment of a Palestinian state.

Haddad points out that Israel seeks to accelerate the implementation of its plan on the ground to prevent any future possibility of a political settlement.

Haddad warns that these policies will escalate until 2026, as the occupation works to impose new facts on the ground, by changing the geography and demographics of the West Bank, with the aim of eliminating the possibility of establishing an independent Palestinian state.

Haddad points out that the occupation seeks to implement the "decisive plan", which aims to make the Palestinians live without resistance or rejection of the new reality, so that they have two options: either accept the occupation as a fait accompli, or face forced and voluntary displacement.

The next stage may witness an expansion in the entry of tanks into the West Bank

Haddad expects that the next phase will witness an expansion in the entry of Israeli tanks into various areas of the West Bank, with their positioning inside the cities, with the aim of imposing a new reality and isolating the Palestinian cities from the villages and camps, which will lead to dividing the West Bank into isolated “cantons”, making geographical and demographic communication between the Palestinian communities difficult.

Haddad explains that achieving the occupation's goals depends on the absence of serious Arab and international action to confront it, as well as the absence of a unified Palestinian program linking the West Bank to the Gaza Strip, which will enable Israel to implement its plan aimed at liquidating the Palestinian cause, weakening the Palestinian Authority in preparation for eliminating it as a political entity, and preventing any possibility of establishing an independent Palestinian state.

A show of force intended to intimidate and spread fear.

Writer and political analyst Sari Samour asserts that the Israeli tanks’ storming of the Jenin camp is a show of force, aimed at intimidation and spreading fear, in addition to sending internal messages to Israeli society that the occupation army is working and controlling the situation in the West Bank, despite the absence of a real confrontation or a “second front” as the occupation is trying to portray it.

Samour explains that this military move and the deployment of tanks in a refugee camp, although it is tactical on the surface, carries within it a strategic dimension linked to a broader plan targeting the Palestinian refugee issue.

Systematically work to eliminate any appearance that reminds us of the right of return.

Samour points out that Israel, after receiving American support to ban the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA), is systematically working to eliminate any appearance that reminds one of the right of return, as it has not only stopped funding the agency or besieged it, but is also seeking to eliminate it completely.

Samour believes that the Palestinian camps, being residential communities that carry the symbolism of refugees, constitute one of the most prominent obstacles to this plan, and therefore, Israel is waging the “UNRWA battle” with the aim of obliterating this symbolism and removing any mention of the refugee issue.

Samour explains that what is happening in Jenin camp can be considered a "rehearsal" for a broader plan that may include the rest of the camps, as Israel has not yet expanded to all of them, but it may be in the preparatory stage for that.

The upcoming scenarios will be bleak and difficult.

Samour expects that the upcoming scenarios will be bleak and difficult, as the occupation’s success in emptying the Jenin camp, along with the Nur Shams and Tulkarm camps, of their residents, and the continued presence of the Israeli army in these areas, may pave the way for carrying out similar operations in all the camps of the West Bank.

Samour points out that the occupation seeks to destroy as many homes as possible inside the camps, making them uninhabitable, and preventing their residents from returning to them or rebuilding them, which leads to the forced displacement and dispersion of the residents, and thus undermines the symbolism of the camp as a place that represents asylum and the right of return.

Despite these challenges, Samour asserts that the refugee issue cannot be completely eliminated, because it is not just residential areas that can be demolished, but rather it is part of the Palestinian conscience.

Samour stresses that any Israeli attempts to obscure this issue will not succeed, because the Palestinian refugee will continue to adhere to his right to return wherever he lives, no matter how much the occupation tries to impose new facts on the ground.