The Israeli premier ordered the immediate closure of Hebron and a comprehensive lockdown of the occupied West Bank on Friday. This followed a shooting incident that wounded five Israeli occupiers in the southern West Bank. Israeli army fire also killed two Palestinians near the town of Halhul in the Hebron district.
"I instructed the Israeli army and security agencies to impose an immediate closure on Hebron and prepare for a comprehensive lockdown across Judea and Samaria, starting today," the prime minister said in an official statement.
The directives followed a security assessment held with senior defense and security officials. Participants included the military chief of staff alongside the heads of the Shin Bet security agency and the National Security Council.
Public broadcaster KAN reported that military Chief of Staff Eyal Zamir approved a security cordon surrounding Hebron and its neighboring villages after the reported shooting.
Eyewitnesses told reporters that Israeli forces closed all entrances to Hebron using iron gates, effectively placing the city under siege. The military also blocked access points to various towns and residential communities by deploying earth mounds and new checkpoints to prevent civilian movement.
During the operations, Israeli forces raided the outskirts of Hebron and several nearby localities. Troops searched local shops and confiscated surveillance camera footage from businesses in the area.
The security measures arrive ahead of legislative elections scheduled in Israel for October 27.
The West Bank and occupied East Jerusalem have experienced a sharp escalation in military operations and occupier violence since the launch of the war on the Gaza Strip in October 2023.
Violence across the territory has involved the killing and arrest of Palestinians, home demolitions, the burning of mosques and vehicles, and the destruction of agricultural land. Authorities have also prevented farmers from accessing their fields, displaced Palestinian communities, and advanced illegal settlement expansion.
