With army incursions and airstrikes deepening Palestinian resentment, Israel’s violent campaign in the West Bank is driving recruitment for militant groups.
Nearly 20 years after the Second Intifada ended, the Israeli military has fully resumed its use of air power in the West Bank, particularly in the northern part of the occupied territory. Since October 7, it has launched more than 46 drone attacks and airstrikes in the area — the latter of which killed 77 Palestinians, including 14 children, by the end of June.
This has created a situation that, to many Palestinians, resembles a “mini-Gaza” — a condition in which Israel is repressing the people from the skies, but also an example of a counterinsurgency campaign that is doomed to fail.
Jenin has been a particular target of this campaign. Despite scores of military incursions, a dozen airstrikes, and extensive operations since October 7, Israel has been unable to quell Palestinian armed resistance in the city and its refugee camp — primarily led by the Jenin Brigade, an umbrella group made up of various factional militias.
The situation in Jenin, along with other cities and camps in the West Bank, reflects a classic case of insurgency: an entrenched local resistance leverages its intimate knowledge of the geography of the camp, strong community support, and adaptive tactics to counter a more conventionally powerful military opponent. Such insurgencies typically thrive on the support and sympathy of the local population, exploiting the occupying force’s missteps and the resulting grievances to bolster their ranks.
“We are not fighting to prove military power — we are fighting for our right to exist,” explained Abu Hosni, 38, a resident of Jenin camp, a father of three, and a former fighter during the Second Intifada; he asked to use a pseudonym for his safety.
At the same time, the continuous violence and destruction has created a humanitarian crisis. The camp suffers from frequent power blackouts, shortages of essential supplies, and breakdown of public infrastructure. And with each army incursion deepening the resentment among the local population, Israel is not only failing to weaken the militant groups, but serving to drive recruitment for armed resistance.
As a result, many have also grown weary and fearful of the situation in the camp. Abu Hosni, who was once a member of the Fatah-aligned Al-Aqsa Martyrs Brigades, lived through the Second Intifada and was imprisoned by Israel three times. He described himself as a “servant” of the Jenin Brigade, but also lamented the tragedy that, years after he had taken up arms, so many youth were still being met with a violent fate.
“I see the younger men gearing up and joining ranks; I don’t know how to describe my feelings, but it doesn’t make me happy,” Abu Hosni said. “I always tell them: let us think of how to serve, rather than how to be replaced.”
Resistance and refugeehood
Jenin refugee camp holds significant symbolic value for Palestinians, with a legacy of defiance dating back to the Second Intifada and “Operation Defensive Shield,” the notoriously brutal campaign led by Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon in 2002. This history reinforces the determination of many local fighters and civilians to resist the Israeli military. It also inspires solidarity and support from across the Palestinian territories, turning the camp into a focal point of the broader struggle against the occupation.
Today, the resistance in Jenin is marked both by its diversity and its unity. The Jenin Brigade — which encompasses members from various Palestinian factions such as Palestinian Islamic Jihad (PIJ), Hamas, Fatah, and the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP) — represents the joint front against Israeli incursions.
The formation of the Jenin Brigade coincided with the famous escape of six Palestinian prisoners from Israel’s Gilboa Prison, which came on the heels of a violent summer that followed the “Unity Intifada” of May 2021. That uprising saw a mass mobilization across historic Palestine, sparked by violent Israeli encroachments around the Haram al-Sharif/Temple Mount and in the Jerusalem neighborhood of Sheikh Jarrah — and an 11-day war on Gaza after Hamas launched rockets in retaliation for Israel’s provocations in Jerusalem.
As Israeli military violence escalated in the West Bank during that summer, many Palestinian youth in cities like Jenin and Nablus turned to armed resistance; older and dormant militias, such as Fatah’s Al-Aqsa Martyrs Brigades, were also resurrected.
Just as important for sustaining Jenin’s resistance has been its strong identity as a refugee camp — one of many established in the years following the 1948 Nakba, when Zionist forces expelled hundreds of thousands of Palestinians from their homeland.
“There is a profound sense of refugeehood in the communities of Jenin, Tulkarem, and elsewhere,” said Mohammad Sabbagh, the chairman of the Jenin camp’s Popular Services Committee, which oversees day-to-day affairs in the area and liaises with the UN Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA) and the Palestinian Authority (PA).
Like other Palestinians, the shared experience of the Nakba — not just as a historical moment, but as an ongoing phenomenon — fosters Jenin’s communal sumud, or steadfastness, in the face of Israeli oppression. And with the intergenerational trauma resulting from the Nakba, Sabbagh argues that, as difficult as conditions may get, it is almost impossible for many refugees and their descendants to ever consider leaving the camp.
According to political analyst Jihad Harb, the camp’s identity “is deeply intertwined with the right of return — even if residents may not believe it will materialize.” For Palestinian refugees, he explained, the right of return is more than a political stance; it is a moral imperative that acknowledges their historical plight and the pain they have endured since their displacement in 1948. It is a symbol of recognition and justice that they cling to, reinforcing their collective memory and their ongoing struggle for dignity.
“The demand for acknowledgement of their suffering is pivotal in sustaining their resilience and solidarity in the face of continuous adversity,” Harb added.
‘Not one house isn’t hit with bullets’
Against Israel’s increasingly aggressive incursions, Palestinian militants and residents see armed resistance as a form of self-defense, both to protect their lives and to thwart attempts to uproot the refugees yet again. “We are now facing a policy of destruction aimed at forcing people to voluntarily leave the camp,” Sabbagh told +972.
“The military incursions are clearly aimed at creating a coercive atmosphere for a new Nakba, the weakening of the PA’s sovereignty, and [undermining] the work of local community bodies to face our own issues,” he continued. “The occupation is leaving us no choice but to defend ourselves with all possible means.”
This discourse of self-defense is echoed by the militants themselves. “The camp is only trying, with its most basic means, to defend itself,” said one armed fighter in his 20s, who grew up witnessing the total collapse of Jenin camp in 2002. The Israeli army’s relentless targeting of the camp, he continued, was an attempt at turning the residents into “slaves” under military rule. “Our youth don’t see any life other than the occupation,” he said, but they are driven to join the resistance because “we are a nation of free-willed people.”
“If [the Israelis] left us alone, there would be no need for [the Brigades] — we would be focused on ourselves, on our prosperity, on education,” the young fighter told +972 as he stood by the side of the road, manning a roadblock at an entrance to the camp to inspect cars in anticipation of infiltration of Israeli special forces. “Now, we are left to repair the streets and connect the water and electricity.”
“Every time the Israeli army raids the Jenin refugee camp, it puts us under a total blackout,” he continued. “It’s like in Gaza: they know that no one can reach us because of the checkpoints, and people are afraid, so they isolate us and start assaulting us. But not one house isn’t hit with bullets in this camp, and because of that, we are all united.”
Israel’s dozens of operations since October — which deploy artillery, ground forces, drones, and other advanced technologies — have devastated the refugee camp. D9 bulldozers frequently rampage through the narrow alleys, with soldiers opening fire, breaking into and searching homes, while aircrafts launch missiles into the camp.
According to Sabbagh, over 70 Palestinians from the Jenin refugee camp, and about 80 more from the Jenin region, have been killed since October 7; 180 homes in the camp have been totally destroyed, and almost every one of the camp’s 3,800 homes has suffered some kind of damage. Some families have been displaced, and daily life has been disrupted for all.
“Right now, we are focused on trying to rebuild the basic infrastructure [for residents] to be able to carry on with their lives and businesses in the camp,” Sabbagh told +972.
“The soldiers have no boundaries,” said paramedic Hazem Masarweh, explaining that the work of emergency services in Jenin has become nearly impossible. At the start of almost every Israeli incursion, according to Masarweh, Israeli forces surround the entrances of the city’s hospital, close off roads leading to the refugee camp, and impose a power outage and communications blackout to facilitate the infiltration of army vehicles and troop units.
In addition to these open military operations, the Israeli army has carried out undercover operations and extrajudicial assassinations against Palestinian fighters. This generated international headlines in January when Israeli commandos, disguised as medical workers and Muslim women, infiltrated the Ibn Sina hospital in Jenin and killed three Palestinian militants.
The Israeli army said one of the militants killed was Mohammad Walid Jalamna, whom they identified as a member of Hamas planning an attack inspired by the October 7 assault. The commandos also killed Mohammad and Basel Al-Ghazzawi, two brothers who were associated with the Jenin Brigade; Basel had been injured by an Israeli drone strike in October, and was recovering in the hospital when he was assassinated.
Yet none of this has succeeded in eradicating the Jenin Brigade. Instead, a younger generation is continuing to emerge, often carrying guns plastered with stickers of their slain friends, vowing revenge against the army.
‘The PA is trying to contain the resistance without understanding it’
Similar developments are taking place in the nearby city of Tulkarem, which was once known for its vibrant community. Enforced closures, raids, and the demolition of public infrastructure — including the city’s main vegetable market — have left Tulkarem’s once-thriving economy suffering, with businesses closing down due to the unsafe environment and the disruption of supply chains.
In the city’s twin refugee camps of Tulkarem and Nur Shams, like in Jenin, Palestinian residents have voiced their fury at the Israeli army and support for the local resistance. The Israeli army has displaced families as it destroys homes or renders them uninhabitable. The local healthcare system is also struggling, and there is a major need for psychological support for those traumatized. Children, in particular, are bearing the brunt of the violence, with their education disrupted and sense of security shattered.
In these camps, too, young Palestinians have been turning to armed groups to fight the occupation. The camp’s dense and narrow alleyways provide a challenging terrain for conventional military operations, allowing local fighters to employ guerrilla tactics effectively. These tactics, characterized by hit-and-run attacks, ambushes, and the use of improvized explosive devices, have made it difficult for Israeli forces to maintain control.
The Israeli army says its incursions in Tulkarem, like in Jenin, are aimed at rooting out these resistance fighters. But Palestinians say that the constant and stifling presence of Israeli military vehicles and checkpoints is deliberately disrupting their normal flow of life, making it difficult for residents to go about their daily routines.
“This is pure revenge,” said Lubna Shahin, a local resident of Nur Shams refugee camp. “They are clearly not after the local resistance, because the resistance to injustice can never die. But they are taking advantage of the war on Gaza to carry out the same atrocity on a smaller scale.”
“If they wanted to end the local resistance, they should leave us alone,” she continued. “This way, our youth will not think of taking up arms, because all we want is peace.”
To make matters worse, the PA — which is meant to govern Jenin and other Palestinian cities in “Area A,” as designated by the Oslo Accords — has been unable to restore security or rehabilitate the destroyed refugee camps, Palestinians say. According to one PA security source, who requested anonymity, the PA feels burdened by Israel’s repeated incursions, which leave a massive cost as local authorities are forced to repair streets, water pipes, and other basic infrastructure.
But the PA is also using its own security forces to crack down on militants — solidifying its reputation as a subcontractor of the Israeli occupation. On July 26, PA forces sent an armed unit into a hospital in Tulkarem, attempting to arrest Mohammad Jaber, a leader of the Tulkarem Brigades who was receiving treatment, according to several local sources. Jaber, also known as Abu Shuja, is known to be affiliated with the Islamic Jihad movement, and is wanted by the Israeli authorities. Sources said that Abu Shuja was admitted to hospital after injuring his fingers while handling an explosive device.
As the incident unraveled, videos began to circulate over social media showing Abu Shuja being escorted by a supportive crowd, including prominent Fatah members from the Tulkarem refugee camp, amid gunfire between militants and PA security forces outside the hospital. Ultimately, Tulkarem Governor Mustafa Taqtaqa said in a statement: “The security forces withdrew without making any arrests, to avoid Palestinian bloodshed and to maintain civil peace.
Soon afterward, however, militants in Tulkarem and Jenin fired at security forces guarding local PA headquarters in both cities, in protest. “The PA is trying to contain the resistance without understanding it,” said a young activist from Tulkarem refugee camp, who is affiliated with Fatah. ”It is acting like a stepfather trying to discipline its disobedient children, but it is unable to convince them.”
‘Injustice and betrayal’
Since the Abu Shuja incident, according to officials from the camp, simmering discontent has thus far been contained. But the potential for an internal explosion looms large.
A recent poll by the Palestinian Center for Policy and Survey Research (PCPSR), for example, showed growing support for armed resistance against Israel, at 63 percent, while 62 percent support the dissolution of the PA.
“The PA must understand that the resistance is driven by a sense of injustice under the occupation, but the sense of betrayal from their own people could shift their focus from Israeli forces to PA security personnel,” the young Fatah activist said.
According to Harb, the political analyst, the PA’s challenge is to navigate this precarious situation, balancing its security responsibilities while addressing the legitimate grievances of its population. “The public image of Abu Shuja over people’s shoulders symbolizes defiance against the PA,” he said. “The PA is trying to shield itself from the rising opposition that supports the image of militants and armed resistance.”
The situation in Tulkarem and Jenin is thus a microcosm of the broader situation in the West Bank. The Israeli military, which claims to be reaching its last phase in the war on Gaza before it pursues so-called “day after” plans, is clearly failing in its counterinsurgency campaign in the West Bank.
“The massive killings and destruction through surgical operations cannot uproot the resistance as long as the occupation persists,” Harb said. “The personal stories of those young militants is part of a long history of the struggle of their parents and grandparents, and of their sacrifices ever since they lost everything in 1948.”
The IDF Spokesperson responded to our request for comment with the following statement: “The IDF operates wherever necessary, especially in areas with high levels of terrorism, such as Jenin. The IDF apprehends individuals wanted for suspected terrorist activities, incitement of terrorism, and terrorists who have carried out or are planning to carry out attacks.
“Most counter-terrorism operations are conducted at night to reduce friction between IDF troops and the civilian population, as well as for the safety of our forces. It should be noted that similar to other places, in Judea and Samaria [the West Bank], terrorists also use civilian infrastructure, including medical or religious facilities, for terrorist purposes, thereby directly endangering uninvolved civilians.”
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