250,000 residents face isolation as Israel seals Hebron following fatal shooting

Israel initiated a siege of the West Bank city of Hebron and the neighboring town of Halhul on Friday. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu made the announcement following an incident in which gunmen killed two Israeli soldiers and injured three others near a checkpoint outside the city.

Netanyahu stated that residents of the neighborhoods where the shooters lived would be forced to leave. He also promised widespread demolition of homes. The first demolition took place within hours of the shooting. Ministers had gathered at the scene of the incident ahead of elections scheduled for Tuesday.

Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich appeared in a video posted online while standing in front of a bulldozer. The machine was demolishing a Palestinian home near the site of the firefight. Smotrich said the structure, which he described as built without permits, was destroyed to create deterrence and exact a price. No official link was established between the building's owners and the attackers.

The Israeli high court issued a temporary order to stop the demolitions shortly after work began. Human rights lawyer Mohammed Dahleh filed an urgent petition on behalf of two factory owners nearby. He argued that the actions violated international law regarding collective punishment and Israeli administrative law. Dahleh described the move as an attempt to replicate practices seen in Gaza within the West Bank.

Michael Sfard, an Israeli lawyer, called Smotrich's video a direct admission that the demolitions constituted collective punishment. He noted that deterrence has historically been used to justify such measures.

Defence Minister Israel Katz pledged further displacement and destruction. He compared the plan for Hebron to the treatment of the Jenin refugee camp, where nearly 20,000 people have been displaced. Katz stated that every clan neighborhood from which terrorists emerged would be evacuated. Hebron is the largest Palestinian city in the occupied West Bank, with a population of approximately 250,000.

Netanyahu said plans were being drawn up for the largest military operation in the West Bank since 1967. He indicated that while no specific date had been set, the operation was on the way.

The Israeli military reported that the attack was carried out by two men armed with an assault rifle and a handgun. They drove a vehicle with Israeli license plates and opened fire after soldiers stopped them at a temporary checkpoint. Both men were killed in a gunfight that lasted 20 minutes. An AFP photographer witnessed the exchange and saw two Palestinian men firing at Israeli forces.

Prominent Israelis, including a candidate for the Amcha Yisrael party, shared theories linking the photographer to the gunmen. The Foreign Press Association expressed alarm, calling the claims dangerous and defamatory. The association described the photographer as a professional who was documenting his duties. This incident occurred one week after settlers severely injured photographer Heidi Levine while she documented olive harvesting.

Since October 2023, the West Bank has experienced increased settlement expansion and violence. More than 1,100 Palestinians have been killed by Israeli forces or settlers. Violence has intensified since the olive harvest began in late September. Polls suggest the governing far-right coalition may lose its majority in Tuesday's elections. National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir visited Hebron on Friday, demanding the dismantling of the Palestinian Authority and stricter limits on Palestinian movement.