TEL AVIV (Azat TV) – Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu announced Friday that he has ordered a major military operation and a full lockdown of the occupied West Bank following a shooting attack near the city of Hebron that killed two Israeli soldiers, as reported by CBS News.
According to the Israel Defense Forces, two Palestinian gunmen opened fire at a junction near Hebron, killing Staff Sergeant Ron Yonatan Roytman and Sergeant Yuval Shai Svilem while lightly injuring three other individuals. Military forces returned fire and killed the two attackers at the scene. The IDF stated that a large cache of weapons and ammunition, including M16 rifles and handguns, was discovered in the vehicle used by the shooters, indicating preparations for a broader assault.
Lockdown Order and Evacuation Plans
Following an emergency meeting with his Security Cabinet and top military officials, Netanyahu announced that he instructed the military to cordon off Hebron, a city of over 200,000 residents, and prepare for a comprehensive lockdown across the entirety of the West Bank. The prime minister stated that authorities plan to evacuate residents from the specific Hebron neighborhood where the gunmen lived before conducting a thorough house-to-house sweep to dismantle local militant infrastructure.
“Our first step will be to demolish this site and completely transform it,” Netanyahu said during a televised address, noting that the operation would extend further into Judea and Samaria. NBC New York noted that emergency medical services from Magen David Adom responded to the initial incident at approximately 7:15 a.m. local time, treating multiple casualties at the Yehuda Junction.
Political Stakes and Regional Context
The deadly escalation unfolds just days before Israel’s national elections on Tuesday, a crucial vote that is widely viewed as a referendum on Netanyahu’s leadership. The prime minister asserted that the shooting was an intentional attempt by adversaries to influence the election outcome, pointing to prior warnings regarding security threats ahead of the ballot. In response to the attack, Netanyahu’s Likud party canceled all scheduled campaign events for the remainder of the day.
Meanwhile, far-right members of Netanyahu’s coalition pushed for even harsher measures. National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir called for the dismantling of the Palestinian Authority, while Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich advocated for a comprehensive military campaign in the territory akin to operations in Gaza and Lebanon. Hamas praised the attack as a legitimate response to ongoing actions in the region, though the group stopped short of directly claiming responsibility.
The West Bank has experienced a severe surge in friction, marked by increased military activity and rising settler violence coinciding with the annual olive harvesting season. The United Nations has documented numerous security incidents affecting Palestinian farmers and international activists in recent weeks, further compounding tensions across the territory.