Netanyahu halts West Bank traffic after Hebron gunmen ambush kills two IDF troops

Palestinian residents of the West Bank faced new restrictions on Friday after Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu ordered the territory closed. The decision followed a shooting incident near the Yehuda Junction outside Hebron, where two Israeli soldiers were killed and three others sustained minor injuries. Emergency responders treated five people at hospitals in Israel, with some victims suffering critical gunshot wounds to the lower limbs.

The Israeli military stated that two Palestinian gunmen from Hebron reached a military position in the morning. Armed with an M16 assault rifle and a handgun, the men engaged in a firefight with soldiers that lasted approximately 20 minutes before both attackers were killed. The army reported that the suspects had foiled a planned attack on Israeli civilians and that a large quantity of ammunition intended for a larger-scale operation was found in their vehicle.

Security forces began cordonning off Hebron immediately after the incident. The military said it would conduct precise searches in the specific neighborhood where the gunmen operated. These operations are expected to continue for several days. Residents in the targeted area will be permitted to leave only through three designated exit points, subject to questioning and security screening. The army also announced it had begun demolishing infrastructure identified as a threat.

Netanyahu convened an emergency meeting with senior security officials to address the violence. He attributed the incident to Hamas, stating that the group was planning a major attack to murder civilians, though he provided no specific details on the plan. The Prime Minister noted that Israeli soldiers had thwarted the attack with courage. Later in the day, the army reported that dozens of operations were conducted across the West Bank, resulting in the arrest of dozens of individuals, some linked to Hamas and Islamic Jihad, and the seizure of weapons including M16 rifles and submachine guns.

The closure marks the fourth time in the past month that Israel has restricted movement in the West Bank by shutting gates and checkpoints. This development occurs just before Israeli voters head to the polls next Tuesday to decide whether to grant Netanyahu another term. He warned that Hamas might attempt to strike Israel to influence the election, a claim for which he offered no evidence.

The Prime Minister stated that the military would force Palestinians out of the Hebron neighborhood from which the attackers originated, comparing the move to previous assaults on refugee camps in 2025. Human Rights Watch has described such expulsions as war crimes, a characterization Israel rejects. In Hebron, a surge in settler violence has coincided with the olive harvest this year. Amnesty International called the period a season of horror for Palestinian families.

Tzuriel Edri of the emergency response team described the scene as difficult, noting that responders arrived while shooting was still active in the area. An investigation into the incident is currently underway.