‘Blood Spilled in Jenin to Determine Response,’ Palestinian Factions Warn as Israeli Op Continues

Palestinian militant factions Hamas and Islamic Jihad threatened on Monday to retaliate for the Israeli operation launched in the West Bank refugee camp of Jenin overnight Monday which has killed seven Palestinians.

Hamas political chief Ismail Haniyeh said that “the blood that will be spilled will determine the next phase,” while Islamic Jihad declared that “all options” are in the table.

The large-scale operation was launched in the early hours of Monday with air strikes against several targets, followed by ground troop incursion into the camp. Seven Palestinians were killed while 27 others were wounded. The Israeli army said one Israeli soldier was lightly wounded from grenade shrapnel and taken to a hospital.

The factions’ “joint operations room” called on West Bank residents to protect Jenin: “The Israeli aggression and the occupation’s conduct are what will determine how the factions will respond. We call on all Palestinian people, in all villages and towns in the Jenin area, to take up the struggle and teach the occupation a lesson.”

Hussein al-Sheikh, secretary general of the PLO’s Executive Committee, spoke to the Jordanian Foreign Minister Ayman Safadi on Monday about the operation. Safadi denounced the Israeli move and warned of an escalation, while calling on the international community to take immediate actions to halt the operation.

Jamal Hawil, a prominent Fatah movement member from Jenin, said that armed Palestinians “are ready for the struggle and prepared to defend themselves.” The Fatah leader in Jenin, Ata Abu Ramila, added: “We will not raise a white flag. The Palestinian people are with us and we will continue the struggle.”

Nabil Abu Rudeineh, spokesman for Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, called the Israeli operation “a new war crime against the Palestinian people” and called on the international community to “put an end to its shameful silence and take serious steps to stop the Israeli aggression.”