West Bank displacement follows deadly Hebron clash

Tensions in the occupied West Bank entered a new phase after an armed attack near Hebron on October 23. Two Israeli soldiers were killed and three were wounded in the incident. The two Palestinians who carried out the attack were also killed following about twenty minutes of clashes.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu announced plans for an operation of a scale not seen since 1967. He threatened the evacuation of neighborhoods, searches of homes, and demolition activities against targets set by occupation forces.

“The occupation army's attacks in Hebron are collective punishment.”

Israeli forces launched raids and made arrests in the areas where the attackers lived. Some Palestinians were instructed to vacate their homes, while Hebron was placed under siege and movement restrictions across the West Bank were expanded.

Hebron Mayor Yusuf Zuhayir al-Jabiri said the army operated in the Jaladeh and Ain Deyr Baha neighborhoods near a military checkpoint at the city entrance. He reported that about 1,200 Palestinians were forced to leave their homes.

The mayor added that approximately 1,300 more people face the risk of losing their homes. He also stated that workplaces, factories, homes, and roads were destroyed during the attacks, describing the intervention as disproportionate.

The Palestinian Prisoners Club said Israeli forces arrested about 70 Palestinians on Friday and Saturday. Residents reported that black crosses were placed on the homes of Palestinians expelled from their houses, though the meaning of the marks remains unclear.

The Palestinian Authority described the attacks in Hebron as collective punishment. Israeli settlement expansion policy continues to draw international criticism, with UN bodies and many countries considering settlements in the occupied West Bank illegal under international law.