Netanyahu orders ‘very extensive’ operation in West Bank after two Israeli soldiers killed

According to the Israel Defense Forces, the two Palestinian assailants opened fire on soldiers at a temporary checkpoint outside Hebron after failing to reach a nearby highway where they had intended to attack civilians. The ensuing gunfight lasted more than 20 minutes, leaving five Israelis wounded, two of whom later succumbed to their injuries.

An AFP photographer witnessed the battle, seeing two Palestinian men armed with a handgun and an automatic rifle exchanging fire with Israeli forces. Netanyahu's office later instructed security forces to immediately cordon off Hebron and prepare for a full closure of the West Bank starting on Friday.

Military Response

After the shooting, Netanyahu held an emergency meeting of his security cabinet and officials from top military and security agencies. He claimed Hamas was 'planning a major attack aimed at murdering innocent civilians.' During a visit to Hebron, Netanyahu announced Israeli forces would enter the neighborhood of the attackers and displace its residents, applying a model previously used in refugee camps in the northern West Bank.

Escalating Tensions

Closures of the West Bank are becoming more common, with Friday's lockdown being the fourth time in the past month that Israel had imposed restrictions across the territory. These measures shut gates and checkpoints connecting Palestinian villages to major roads, which remain open to Israeli drivers including settlers.

The far-right Israeli finance minister Bezalel Smotrich called for a military campaign in the West Bank 'exactly like in Gaza.' He emphasized: 'There is no other option but a comprehensive military campaign to dismantle the Palestinian Authority, collect weapons and eliminate terrorists. Exactly like in Gaza and Lebanon.' Smotrich added this would be 'one of the first measures that we must demand and apply' in the next government.

Election Context

Human rights groups warned Netanyahu and his government could use the attack to justify tougher measures against Palestinians and bolster their security credentials before Tuesday's election. The vote comes three years after the Hamas-led attacks on Israel that triggered the war in Gaza.

Israeli settlers are increasingly taking over Palestinian properties, with authorities stepping up demolitions of homes lacking building permits. The campaign has intensified since the war in Gaza started in October 2023, with accelerating land seizures and settlement expansion across the occupied West Bank. More than 1,100 Palestinians have been killed there by Israeli forces or settlers, whose violence has surged during the annual olive harvest.

Recent settler attacks include incidents on October 16 where they burned cars and trees and injured a Washington Post photographer, followed by attacks on European diplomats, a French mayor and Palestinian olive pickers the next day, injuring three people and damaging a diplomatic vehicle.