Netanyahu Orders Siege and Evictions in Hebron After Soldier Shootout
Two gunmen killed at a checkpoint triggered immediate construction orders, a high court stay, and a campaign of collective punishment days before Israeli elections.
By Lorenzo Evans ·
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu declared a siege on Hebron and the neighboring town of Halhul on Friday. The move follows a shootout at a checkpoint that left two Israeli soldiers dead and three wounded. Netanyahu stated that residents of the gunmen's home neighborhoods would be forced out and that mass demolitions would follow.
The attack occurred when two men armed with an assault rifle and a handgun stopped their vehicle at a temporary checkpoint outside Hebron. The car displayed Israeli number plates. A firefight lasted 20 minutes until both gunmen were killed. An AFP photographer witnessed the exchange en route to another assignment.
Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich arrived at the scene shortly after the shooting. He posted a video of himself standing in front of a bulldozer tearing down a Palestinian home. Smotrich described the demolition of the unpermitted building as a measure to create deterrence and exact a price. No link was established between the building's owners and the attackers.
Israel's high court issued a temporary order halting the demolitions shortly after the work began. Human rights lawyer Mohammed Dahleh filed the urgent petition on behalf of two nearby factory owners. He argued the action breached international law on collective punishment. Dahleh said the move attempted to copy illegal practices used in Gaza in the heart of the West Bank.
Defence Minister Israel Katz promised further forced displacement and drew a comparison with the Jenin refugee camp. Nearly 20,000 people have been forced from their homes in Jenin. Katz stated that every clan neighborhood from which the terrorists emerged would be evacuated. Hebron, the largest Palestinian city in the occupied West Bank, has about 250,000 residents.
National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir traveled to Hebron on Friday to demand the dismantling of the Palestinian Authority. He also called for tighter limits on Palestinian movement. Polls suggest the governing far-right coalition may lose its majority in elections scheduled for Tuesday.
Since October 2023, more than 1,100 Palestinians have been killed by Israeli forces or settlers in the West Bank. Violence has intensified since the olive harvest began in late September. Netanyahu said plans are underway for the largest military operation in the West Bank since 1967, though no specific date has been set.
Source: The Guardian
