Israel announced Sunday that it will close all land crossings with the West Bank on election day next week, while also vowing to exact a heavy price in response to the killing of two soldiers in an attack by two Palestinian gunmen.
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This announcement comes a day after the Israeli army began an operation in the West Bank city of Hebron, ordering some 250 families to leave, some at midnight, in response to the killing of two soldiers in an attack by Palestinian gunmen.
Israeli Defense Minister Yisrael Katz said that about 2,000 Palestinians were displaced from their homes in Hebron on Saturday, as part of the army's operation.
The Israeli army later The political leadership has approved a ban on the entry and exit of Palestinian workers throughout Judea and Samaria (the Israeli designation for the West Bank) and the Jordan Valley, including industrial zones, in addition to closing all land crossings throughout Election Day.”
The Palestinian Authority on Saturday called for “urgent” international action in response to the “forced displacement” being carried out by Israel in the city of Hebron.
The Israeli military said it carried out operations on Friday and Saturday in 40 different areas across the West Bank.
He added that his forces “arrested about 40 suspects, including members linked to Hamas and Islamic Jihad, as well as suspects in incitement, disturbing public order and throwing stones.”
Hamas praised the “heroic and high-quality operation” and mourned the two attackers, calling for more attacks, without claiming responsibility for them.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who is waging a fierce battle to win the general election scheduled for Tuesday, threatened to launch a large-scale operation in the West Bank “unprecedented since the Six-Day War” in 1967.
For his part, far-right Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich, who also holds a position in the Defense Ministry through which he oversees civilian affairs in the West Bank, said he personally ordered “the immediate demolition of a row of illegal buildings” in response to Friday’s attack.
Katz told Israeli residents, all displaced from the same neighborhood in the city, “will not be allowed to return until we have finished solving all of Hamas’s problems in Hebron.”
Two hours to leave
In the Ain Deir Bahah neighborhood, located between two hills, “X” marks were placed on buildings to indicate that they were uninhabited.
The streets were empty of people and cars except for two Israeli military vehicles, while an Israeli flag was hung on a house that appeared to have been seized by soldiers.
The neighborhood leader, Hijazi Shawar al-Tamimi, 70, who owns a shop selling chickens and animal feed, said the army woke him up at 1:00 AM and asked him and other residents to leave.
He had only two hours to leave, so he simply packed his clothes and official documents. Many families didn't have cars and tried to find ways to seek refuge with relatives elsewhere.
He said that what is happening now is because Netanyahu wants to win the elections. He added: “It is always the Palestinian people who pay the price.”
Hebron Governor Khaled Dudin said that about a third of the city of Hebron was targeted in the operation.
She added that Israeli soldiers “started in the neighborhood from which the perpetrators of the attack came, but there is no guarantee that the operation will not expand.”
He continued: “This is a case of collective punishment against citizens who have no connection or involvement in this matter.”
The governor indicated that 150 families were affected, while the mayor of Hebron, Youssef al-Ja’bari, and local activist Issa Amr estimated this number at 250.
The mayor said: “We will find them shelter, and we will provide these people with all the assistance they need.”
Netanyahu promises a "surprise"
The Israeli army announced that it is conducting “precise and specific searches” focused on the area from which the two gunmen who were killed during the exchange of fire came.
The military said the operation would last for days, in line with similar measures taken after previous attacks.
But Netanyahu promised a "big surprise".
The far-right minister Itamar Ben-Gvir, who is gaining increasing momentum ahead of Tuesday's elections, called on Israel to dismantle the Palestinian Authority.
When asked whether he supported dismantling the Palestinian Authority, Netanyahu boasted that he had rejected pressure from three American presidents to work toward establishing a Palestinian state.
“I will work to neutralize that threat by means that I think are best not to disclose at the moment,” Netanyahu said referring to the Palestinian Authority.
Regarding his attacks on Gaza, Lebanon, Syria and Iran, Netanyahu said: “We have changed the Middle East. I said we would make a change, and that is what we did.”
He added: “There is also a very big surprise waiting for the Palestinian Authority.”
Netanyahu linked the attackers to Hamas, which carried out the October 7, 2023 attack.
This comes at a time when Israeli settlers have intensified their attacks on Palestinians in the West Bank in recent months, with a new wave of such attacks recorded during the current olive harvest season.
The human rights organization Yesh Din documented 672 incidents of violence committed by settlers during the past 26 days, nearly half of which were related to the olive harvest season.
Opinion polls indicate a very close race between Netanyahu and the opposition bloc led by Gadi Eisenkot, the centrist former chief of staff who opposes the establishment of a Palestinian state but has pledged to confront settler violence.
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