More than 12,000 Palestinian children remain in a state of forced displacement as a result of Israel’s ongoing military operations in the northern occupied West Bank, the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA) said on Sunday.
Turkey’s state-run Anadolu Agency reported the development, citing statements from the UN agency.
According to the report, the Israeli army has been conducting military operations in the northern West Bank since January 21, 2025. The offensive began in the Jenin refugee camp and later expanded to the Nur Shams and Tulkarem refugee camps.
Israeli forces have imposed a siege on all three camps, accompanied by widespread destruction of infrastructure, homes, and commercial establishments. Official figures indicate that nearly 50,000 Palestinians have been displaced as a result of the operations.
In a statement posted on the social media platform X, UNRWA said: “More than 12,000 children in the occupied West Bank are still forcibly displaced.”
In response to the crisis, the agency announced that it launched an emergency education programme for displaced children in February 2025. UNRWA said it is providing education services to affected students through temporary learning centres, online classes, self-learning materials, and mental health and psychosocial support.
The agency also noted that its schools across the occupied West Bank are currently serving approximately 48,000 children.
According to Palestinian statistics, since October 2023 Israeli forces and illegal settlers have killed at least 1,105 Palestinians in the occupied West Bank, including East Jerusalem. Nearly 11,000 people have been injured, while around 21,000 others have been detained during the same period.
In a landmark advisory opinion issued in July last year, the International Court of Justice (ICJ) declared Israel’s occupation of Palestinian territory illegal and called for the evacuation of all Israeli settlements from the West Bank and East Jerusalem.
Source: Anadolu Agency.