Overview
- Two Israeli soldiers were killed and three others wounded in a shooting at a Hebron-area checkpoint, and the two alleged Palestinian attackers were shot dead, according to Israeli military statements.
- Following Friday's attack, the IDF, Shin Bet, border police and civil administration began coordinated raids in Hebron with house-to-house searches, targeted demolitions and controlled exits for screened residents.
- Prime Minister Benjamin Netanjahu ordered a full West Bank lockdown and publicly threatened a broader military offensive that he said would outsize past operations.
- Hamas praised the attack without claiming responsibility and the UN secretary-general expressed deep concern about reported demolitions and possible displacements.
- The operation comes days before Israel's parliamentary election and follows a wider pattern of intensified West Bank raids since October 2023, raising legal and humanitarian questions about movement limits, arrests and civilian harm.