Overview
- Hours after the Friday shooting that killed two Israeli soldiers near a Hebron checkpoint, the IDF and Shin Bet began a days-long counterterrorism operation focused on Hebron and nearby towns.
- Israeli forces sealed Hebron, raided at least 15 West Bank localities, demolished buildings and ordered the evacuation of hundreds to more than 2,000 Palestinian residents, municipal and news reports said.
- Palestinian groups and officials reported roughly 70 arrests across the West Bank while the military said it found weapons in the assailants’ vehicle and was searching for other militant infrastructure.
- Human rights organisations and UN rights officials condemned the forced displacements and demolitions as collective punishment and warned the measures could violate international law.
- The offensive is unfolding days before the Oct. 27 election, with hard-line Israeli ministers backing harsh measures and analysts noting long-term factors—settlement growth, limited Palestinian building permits and rising settler violence—underpin the wider escalation.