TPC Staff
The Palestine Chronicle / August 12, 2026
Israel has begun demolishing 26 Palestinian buildings near Jenin as part of a push to reestablish illegal Jewish settlements evacuated two decades ago.
Israeli occupation authorities began demolishing 26 Palestinian buildings near Jenin on Wednesday, in an operation openly linked by far-right Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich to the reestablishment of settlements in the northern occupied West Bank.
Smotrich announced that the demolition operation had begun Wednesday morning, publishing photographs of the destruction and claiming that the Palestinian structures were built “illegally.”
The far-right minister said the operation would pave the way for renewed settlement activity in the area, as the government accelerates efforts to reverse elements of Israel’s 2005 withdrawal from parts of the northern occupied West Bank.
The demolitions come amid a broader escalation across the occupied territory, where Israeli forces have simultaneously raided refugee camps, demolished Palestinian homes and expanded settlement activity.
Jewish settlements evacuated in 2005
The demolitions near Jenin are directly connected to Israeli plans to reestablish Ganim and Kadim, two settlements evacuated more than two decades ago.
In late 2025, the Israeli government approved the reestablishment of the two settlements as part of a wider decision to establish or reorganize 19 settlements across the occupied West Bank.
Ganim and Kadim were evacuated in 2005 alongside Homesh and Sa-Nur under Israel’s so-called “disengagement plan.”
The same plan resulted in the evacuation of settlements from the Gaza Strip and called for the withdrawal of Jewish settlers and permanent military installations from the four northern West Bank settlements, creating greater Palestinian geographical contiguity in the area.
Successive Israeli governments, however, have increasingly dismantled restrictions imposed under that plan.
In March 2023, the Israeli parliament amended the disengagement law, removing restrictions that had prevented Israelis from entering and residing in areas of the northern occupied West Bank evacuated in 2005.
The latest demolitions represent another step toward physically transforming those areas to facilitate the return and expansion of Jewish settlements.
Demolitions near Bethlehem
The operation near Jenin coincided with further Israeli demolitions elsewhere in the occupied West Bank.
Israeli occupation forces demolished a three-story Palestinian residential building in the village of Al-Ma’sara, south of Bethlehem, displacing three families.
Israeli authorities claimed the building lacked a construction permit.
The structure was located in Area C, which constitutes approximately 60 percent of the occupied West Bank and remains under full Israeli military and administrative control.
Palestinians and human rights organizations have repeatedly pointed out that Israeli authorities make obtaining construction permits in Area C extremely difficult, while simultaneously approving and expanding Jewish settlements.
According to the Palestinian Colonization and Wall Resistance Commission, Israeli authorities carried out 341 demolition operations during the first half of 2026, destroying 740 Palestinian structures.
Those demolitions affected 923 Palestinians, while Israeli authorities issued another 254 demolition or stop-work notices during the same period.
Israeli forces raid Balata camp
Israeli forces also stormed the Balata refugee camp, east of Nablus, on Wednesday as military operations continued across the occupied West Bank.
Israeli military patrols entered the camp and surrounding neighbourhoods, while infantry units deployed along Al-Madaris Street.
The raid comes amid intensified Israeli military operations targeting Palestinian refugee camps throughout the occupied West Bank.
Israel has already carried out prolonged military campaigns in Jenin, Tulkarem and Nur Shams refugee camps, forcing tens of thousands of Palestinians from their homes and destroying extensive civilian infrastructure.
Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz recently instructed the army to prepare to extend that model to another Palestinian refugee camp, saying Israeli forces should replicate what he described as the “successful model” implemented in Jenin, Tulkarem and Nur Shams.
‘Expel Palestinians and seize more land’
The demolitions and military raids are unfolding alongside an accelerating campaign by Jewish settlers to establish new outposts and seize Palestinian land.
Writing in the Israeli newspaper Haaretz, military analyst Amos Harel said Israeli forces and police “have completely lost control of the West Bank in recent months,” as settlers establish dozens of farms and outposts and systematically force Palestinian communities from their land.
According to Harel, Israeli soldiers and police frequently ignore settler attacks, while members of the Israeli security forces have on some occasions actively cooperated with them.
He described the campaign as a coordinated system involving a political wing consisting of Israeli ministers and settlement council leaders and a “military wing” operating on the ground.
“The final goal is to expel Palestinians and seize more land,” Harel wrote.
The assessment comes as members of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s government openly advocate expanding Israeli sovereignty and settlements throughout the occupied West Bank.
According to the latest report by the UN secretary-general on Israeli settlements, Israeli authorities advanced or approved plans for 4,750 settlement units across the occupied West Bank, including occupied East Jerusalem, between March 14 and June 12.
On March 25 alone, the Israeli government approved the establishment or legalization of 34 settlements in Area C, the largest number approved in a single Israeli government decision, according to the UN report.
UN Security Council Resolution 2334 states that Israeli settlements established in Palestinian territory occupied since 1967, including East Jerusalem, have “no legal validity” and constitute a flagrant violation of international law.
(Anadolu, TPC, QNN, X)
