Palestinian president visits Jenin camp after large-scale Israeli offensive

Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas (C) delivers a speech during his visit to the northern West Bank city of Jenin, on July 12, 2023. Abbas visited Jenin and its refugee camp on Wednesday, about a week after the end of a large-scale Israeli military offensive on the area. (Photo by Nidal Eshtayeh/Xinhua)

JENIN, West Bank, July 12 (Xinhua) -- Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas visited the northern West Bank city of Jenin and its refugee camp on Wednesday, about a week after the end of a large-scale Israeli military offensive on the area.

During the two-hour visit to the camp, Abbas pledged to immediately rebuild what had been destroyed by the Israeli army during the two-day offensive in Jenin.

"We challenge everyone who wants to defeat us or attack us, and we will not accept aggression from anyone, and we will remain steadfast and patient in our country, and we will not leave," he told the crowds gathered in the camp.

The Israeli offensive in Jenin, which was launched on July 3, killed 12 Palestinians, wounded more than 150, and caused serious destruction in housing and infrastructure in the refugee camp, according to the Palestinian Health Ministry.

Abbas arrived in Jenin by a helicopter and visited the city's cemetery where the 87-year-old president laid a wreath of flowers on the graves of the 12 Palestinians killed in the recent Israeli offensive.

This visit by Abbas to Jenin and its camp was rare as he last came to the city in July 2012 but did not visit the camp, according to local Palestinian sources.

The Jenin camp is home to about 14,000 refugees, according to the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East.

Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas (C) delivers a speech during his visit to the northern West Bank city of Jenin, on July 12, 2023. Abbas visited Jenin and its refugee camp on Wednesday, about a week after the end of a large-scale Israeli military offensive on the area. (Photo by Nidal Eshtayeh/Xinhua)

Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas (C) delivers a speech during his visit to the northern West Bank city of Jenin, on July 12, 2023. Abbas visited Jenin and its refugee camp on Wednesday, about a week after the end of a large-scale Israeli military offensive on the area. (Photo by Nidal Eshtayeh/Xinhua)