Israel Seals Hebron and Evicts 2,000 Residents After Checkpoint Attack

Israeli forces sealed off Hebron, the largest city in the West Bank, and displaced nearly 2,000 residents following a deadly attack at a military checkpoint.

The closure began on Friday after gunmen killed two soldiers at an Israeli military post. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich visited the site via television broadcast. The pair promised extensive retaliation and warned of military operations not seen in the region for nearly 60 years. Their ruling coalition is currently trailing in polls with two days of campaigning remaining before Tuesday's vote.

Within hours of the attack, the city of 250,000 residents was sealed. Military bulldozers leveled the Farsh al-Hawa neighborhood, which is closest to the checkpoint. An industrial zone containing car workshops and a ceramics plant was reduced to rubble by Sunday morning. Meanwhile, forces moved into the Ein Deir Baha district, located a few kilometers away, to target the alleged home of one of the two attackers.

Local residents described a rapid and forceful eviction process. Fahed Ahmaro, a local mosque imam, stated that military loudspeakers ordered homeowners to leave immediately around midnight. Thirty members of his family lived in the house. He left with his elderly mother and grandchildren, returning to find the gates of his home blown up. Ahmaro said he was shopping for clothes on Sunday, unsure how long his family would be displaced.

Abdul Halim al-Tamimi, 77, reported that the military arrived at 1:30 a.m. and gave his family 10 minutes to vacate. He said an intelligence officer threatened to displace them as was done in Gaza. His family was forced out at 3 a.m. after three military vehicles confronted them. By Sunday morning, their villa had been converted into an army headquarters, draped in Israeli flags.

The Hebron municipality reported that 370 families were displaced. The Israeli army stated that residents left voluntarily and that civilians were permitted to evacuate temporarily. Ahmaro rejected this account, questioning why he should leave his house. The army identified the attackers as members of the Jaba'a clan, which it linked to Hamas. Residents of the district countered that the clan numbers no more than 150 people and lacks a reputation for radicalism. Tamimi suggested the operation served election publicity.

By Sunday evening, all roads entering and exiting Hebron were blocked by heavy steel barriers. Only pedestrians could move through the city. Mayor Yousef al-Jabari called the measures collective punishment and noted that media were kept out of the district. Palestinians in the West Bank do not vote in Tuesday's election, but the result will impact their daily lives.