Israel removes around 250 Palestinian families from West Bank city of Hebron after soldier deaths
Israeli forces displaced up to 250 Palestinian families from Hebron in the West Bank, vowing a heavy price after Palestinian militants killed two soldiers at a checkpoint near the city.
The operation is taking place just days before Israel is set to hold elections on Tuesday, in which Netanyahu is expected to face a tight race with the opposition bloc led by former military chief Gadi Eisenkot. In the neighbourhood of Ein Dir Baha nestled between two hills, buildings were marked by X's showing they had been cleared of people.
The streets in the area were deserted of people and cars other than Israeli military vehicles. Around one-third of Hebron has been targeted, local Governor Khaled Dudin told news agency AFP. The governor said 150 families had been affected, while the mayor of Hebron, Youssef al-Jaabari, and local activist Issa Amro put the figure at 250.
This amounts to collective punishment being imposed on civilians who have nothing at all to do with this.
Military Operation
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said he was planning an operation on a scale not seen since Israel first occupied the West Bank in 1967. The Israeli military said it was "conducting precise, targeted and thorough searches" focused on the area of the two gunmen, who were both killed in the gunfight.
The operation will last several days, in line with similar army actions after previous attacks. Taxis piled up behind gates controlled by Israel's military outside Hebron, waiting for Palestinians who are forced to cross on foot. All gates leading in and out of the city were closed to vehicles.
Political Context
Prime Minister Netanyahu's far-right national security advisor, Itamar Ben Gvir, has called on Israel to dismantle the Palestinian Authority, the semi-autonomous body that governs parts of the West Bank in cooperation with Israel under 1990s peace accords.
Asked if he agreed on destroying the Palestinian Authority, Netanyahu, Israel's longest-serving prime minister, boasted that he has rejected pressure from three US presidents to work to establish a Palestinian state. Polls show Netanyahu neck and neck with an opposition bloc led by Gadi Eisenkot, a centre-right former military chief who also opposes a Palestinian state but has promised to crack down on settler violence.
Rights group Yesh Din reported 672 incidents of settler violence over the past 26 days, nearly half related to the olive harvest, an annual event with cultural resonance to Palestinians that extremist settlers have sought to stop. The mayor told AFP: "We will find them shelter and provide these people with all the help they need." Israel promises further action in the run-up to Tuesday's general election.
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