Israeli Foreign Minister Israel Katz has called for evacuating the Jenin refugee camp in the occupied West Bank and "handling it similarly" to the Gaza Strip, according to Israeli media on Sunday.
"The refugee camps are the epicenter of evil. They are not under the control of the Palestinian Authority, but under the control of Iran," Katz said during a closed-door meeting with leaders of the Yesha Council, which includes all municipal councils of illegal Israeli settlements in the West Bank as cited by the public broadcaster KAN.
"The Jenin refugee camp must be evacuated of its citizens, and it must be handled similarly to the Gaza Strip," he added.
Israel has continued its brutal military offensive on the Gaza Strip since an Oct. 7 Hamas attack despite a UN Security Council resolution demanding an immediate cease-fire.
At least 39,800 people have since been killed, mostly women and children, and over 92,000 others injured, according to Palestinian health authorities.
The Israeli army has also killed nearly 620 people and injured over 5,400 others in military raids in the occupied West Bank since last Oct. 7, the Health Ministry said.
The army staged over 70 military raids in the Jenin refugee camp since the start of the Gaza war, killing more than 142 Palestinians and injuring scores, according to official Palestinian data.
Katz called for establishing a barrier along Israel's border with Jordan to stop what he called smuggling through the eastern border.
There was no comment from Jordan on the Israeli claim.
On Tuesday, the Israeli army withdrew from the Jenin refugee camp after a 20-hour military operation during which at least four Palestinians were killed.
In a landmark advisory opinion on July 19, the International Court of Justice declared Israel's decades-long occupation of Palestinian land "illegal" and demanded the evacuation of all existing settlements in the West Bank and East Jerusalem.
