What made Jenin such a terrorist hotbed, we need to go back 23 years to Operation Defensive Shield. These were the days of the Second Intifada, which claimed the lives of a thousand Israelis in severe suicide attacks. A suicide bomber entered the Park Hotel in Netanya during the Passover Seder celebration and blew himself up, killing 30 Israelis, including a father and daughter, several married couples, and 11 Holocaust survivors. Until October 7, this was the deadliest attack in the history of the State of Israel.
Following the attack, which was the peak of bloody months where there was almost a daily suicide bombing, the IDF launched Operation Defensive Shield. The toughest battle took place in the Jenin Refuge eCamp, where the terrorists were well-prepared, booby-trapped the place, and set up ambushes. The terrorists understood well that because there was a civilian population in the area, the IDF would not use artillery or air bombardment.– Hence, human shields. Human shields will only work so long until it becomes necessary to remove all terrorists.