RAMALLAH — For the first time in over two decades, the Israeli army deployed tanks in the occupied West Bank on Sunday, signaling an escalation in military operations across the territory.

A military statement confirmed that troops from the Nahal Infantry Brigade and the Duvdevan Commando Unit launched operations in several villages near Jenin, a flashpoint area in the northern West Bank.

The Israeli public broadcaster KAN reported that the deployment of tanks is part of broader preparations for an expansion of military operations in the region.

This marks the first use of tanks in the West Bank since 2002, when Israel launched Operation Defensive Shield, a large-scale offensive targeting Palestinian cities.

The Israeli military has been conducting continuous raids in the northern West Bank since last month, with at least 60 Palestinians killed and thousands displaced.

The Palestinian Health Ministry reported that since October 7, 2023, when Israel began its military onslaught against Gaza, at least 923 Palestinians have been killed and nearly 7,000 injured in attacks by Israeli forces and illegal settlers in the West Bank.

The deployment comes despite a ruling by the International Court of Justice (ICJ) in July, which declared Israel’s decades-long occupation of Palestinian territories illegal and called for the evacuation of all settlements in the West Bank and East Jerusalem. — Agencies