Around 1,200 Palestinians displaced as Israel begins Hebron operation
Photo: Ralf Roletschek / Wikimedia CommonsThe Israeli military forced around 1,200 Palestinians to leave their homes in Hebron in the occupied West Bank on Saturday, a Palestinian official said, a day after a Palestinian attack killed two Israeli soldiers.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Friday the military would launch a large-scale operation after the soldiers were killed when two Palestinian gunmen opened fire at a military checkpoint near the city. The military said the gunmen were shot dead. The operation, in the Al-Jaladah and Ein Deir Baha neighborhoods near the checkpoint, aims to search for militants and weapons, and the military said it would carry out demolitions.
The Palestinian Authority criticized the operation as “collective punishment.” Hebron municipality head Yousef Zouhair Al-Jabari said around 1,300 more people faced losing their homes in addition to the 1,200 already displaced, and said the military had demolished shops, factories, homes and roads. He also said the operation was motivated by parliamentary elections on Tuesday, when Netanyahu's coalition may lose its majority, according to opinion polls.
The Palestinian Prisoners' Club said Israeli forces arrested around 70 Palestinians on Friday and Saturday; Israeli officials have not commented on any arrests. Residents told Reuters the military expelled many people with no connection to the attackers.
Sources: Reuters (Oct 24, 2026); SRN News (Oct 24, 2026).
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