Following a two-day assault by Israeli forces on the occupied West Bank city of Jenin, Mohamed Ziara highlighted that a total of $15.5 million is required to rebuild the city’s structures and roadways. He noted that his ministry’s inventory of damages also includes damage to roads, buildings, and other pieces of rudimentary infrastructure like water and sewage systems.
Ziara emphasized that the cost of the reconstruction process includes the total removal of debris from four buildings at a cost of $1.5 million, partial damage to 25 buildings at a cost of $2 million, partial damage to 250 housing units at a cost of $2.5 million, damage to 150 commercial and service buildings at a cost of $5 million, and severe damage to a mosque at a cost of $1 million.
The Palestinian minister went on to say that Israeli forces bulldozed five kilometers of roads inside the Jenin refugee camp and $1.5 million is needed in order to repair them. Moreover, adjacent buildings which were partially damaged need to be fixed.
Ziara stated that teams from the Palestinian Ministry of Public Works and Housing have immediately initiated a rescue plan to deal with the aftermath of the Israeli aggression by opening roads and securing collapsing buildings in order not to endanger citizens, and will continue until all these tasks are completed.
He pointed out that unexploded ordnance could be found across the camp, emphasizing that the ministry’s staff and civil defense teams are working to remove them safely.
The UNRWA Commissioner-General, Philippe Lazzarini, has also made a call for assistance in rebuilding the Jenin refugee camp, which was destroyed earlier this week by an Israeli military assault that lasted two days.
“The Israeli military campaign in Jenin on July 4-5 was the fiercest in more than 20 years. It brought back terrible memories for many of the camp’s inhabitants from 2002, when the camp saw one of the worst outbreaks of violence during the Second Intifada (uprising). Families told my UNRWA colleagues that they felt hopeless and afraid for their and their children’s lives as a result of the circumstance, I said in a statement on Thursday.
He continued by stating that the camp had received severe damage, with many homes being destroyed and the streets being covered in rubble. Most areas of the camp also lack water and electricity.
Because a significant portion of the UNRWA health center was destroyed during the operation, we had to build up a temporary health center today. To clear the roads and remove the debris, the Jenin municipality, local authorities, and the Palestinian Authority have launched a large clean-up effort. However, I am quite worried about any remaining unexploded munitions that could endanger the lives of locals and humanitarian relief organizations, according to Lazzarini.
“Right now, our priority is to restore basic services in the camp and to support those whose homes were damaged with emergency cash assistance. It is essential that we repair our own buildings and re-open four UNRWA schools which provide education for 1,700 children and a health center where residents get primary care. To make sure this happens, UNRWA is rapidly deploying more teams and assistance to support residents and the local authorities,” he pointed out.
The UNRWA commissioner-general stressed that his agency needs the support of its partners and donors to help rebuild and rehabilitate its structures and the homes of Palestinian refugees.
Israel launched the military campaign against Jenin in the early hours of Monday morning, mobilizing upwards of 1,000 troops as means of supposedly damaging the resistance “infrastructure” in the city and the refugee camp that it hosts.
At least 12 Palestinians and one Israeli trooper died as a result of the conflict, during which a steadfast Palestinian resistance response prompted the regime to pull out its forces after less than two days.
Israeli troops finally pulled back from Jenin following a 44-hour-long incursion.
