Israeli Forces Raid Qalandia Refugee Camp Near Jerusalem
QALANDIA REFUGEE CAMP- Israeli forces carried out a large-scale raid on the Qalandia refugee camp near Jerusalem on Wednesday, deploying armored vehicles and conducting arrests as the military said the operation targeted suspected militants, weapons and what it described as terrorist infrastructure in the occupied West Bank.
AFP journalists at the scene reported that around a dozen armored military jeeps entered the camp while Israeli soldiers prevented journalists and residents from accessing the area during the operation.
An Israeli military official said security forces were operating in the Qalandia camp to thwart militant activity and detain individuals wanted by Israeli authorities. The operation was described as part of ongoing efforts to counter security threats in the occupied territory.
The Coordinator of Government Activities in the Territories (COGAT), the Israeli Defense Ministry body responsible for civilian affairs in the Palestinian territories, said in an Arabic-language statement that the operation targeted “terrorist elements, terrorist infrastructure, and the possession and trafficking of weapons.”
COGAT added that Israeli authorities would not allow the camp to become what it described as a center for terrorism or a refuge for militants and criminals, referring to the occupied West Bank by the biblical name Judea and Samaria.
Mohammad Aslan, spokesman for the committee that administers affairs in Qalandia camp, said Israeli forces arrested at least 20 people during the operation. He also said soldiers occupied the rooftops of several residential buildings inside the camp as the raid continued.
Video distributed by the Jerusalem Governorate, the Palestinian authority responsible for the area that includes Qalandia, showed alleys obstructed by rubble and large rocks, limiting movement within the camp. The footage also showed furniture and household belongings scattered inside one of the homes searched during the operation.
The raid took place against a backdrop of growing concern among Palestinian residents over the future of the camp. In 2023, the Israeli government led by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu advanced plans for a 9,000-unit settlement on the site of Jerusalem’s former Atarot airport, adjacent to Qalandia.
Since those plans were announced, residents have expressed fears that repeated military raids and home demolitions could form part of a broader effort to displace Palestinians ahead of future settlement construction. Israeli authorities have not publicly linked the security operations to the proposed settlement project.
The latest operation underscores continuing tensions across the occupied West Bank, where Israeli security raids, arrests and military operations have remained frequent amid longstanding disputes over security, settlements and Palestinian residency in areas under Israeli occupation.
