Two Israeli Soldiers Wounded, One Seriously, in Explosion of Booby-Trapped Device Near Jenin

An explosive device detonated during an operational activity by IDF forces in the Jenin refugee camp today, wounding two career service members, an officer seriously and a sergeant lightly. A preliminary inquiry indicates the force was hurt while carrying out a preparatory reconnaissance for the establishment of a permanent outpost inside the refugee camp, after the device exploded when one of the fighters identified a suspicious object and picked it up.

The IDF Spokesperson said an IDF officer was seriously wounded and an IDF sergeant was lightly wounded today, Thursday, as a result of an explosive device detonating during operational activity in the Jenin area, under the Menashe Regional Brigade. The incident occurred in the late morning hours, when a force from the Menashe Brigade was operating inside the refugee camp in the city. Immediately after the explosion, the officer and the sergeant were evacuated by helicopter and vehicle for urgent medical treatment at the hospital, and in parallel an official notification was delivered to their families by authorized military officials.

According to initial details from the incident inquiry, published by military correspondent Doron Kadosh, the force operating in the Jenin refugee camp was not carrying out a routine arrest operation, but rather a special preparatory reconnaissance ahead of the planned establishment of an IDF permanent outpost deep inside the refugee camp. This is part of a change in the operational concept in the West Bank Division, aimed at increasing operational control in the main centers of terrorism in Judea and Samaria and preventing the reconstruction of Islamic Jihad and Hamas infrastructure in the area.

Additional findings from the field inquiry show that during the operational sweep, the force identified a suspicious object placed along the route of movement. One of the fighters picked up the object, and at that stage a powerful explosive device was apparently triggered and exploded, causing the two injuries. Picking up suspicious objects in hostile territory and in an area saturated with explosives such as the Jenin refugee camp is considered an unusual event that is now being examined in depth by command levels.

Following the incident, large security forces, accompanied by technological means and dog units, continue to operate at the scene in order to complete the investigation into the exact circumstances of the explosion and rule out the presence of additional explosive devices or booby traps placed in the patrol area.