It is common apply for Israeli forces to demolish the properties of Palestinians who are suspected of carrying out attacks on Israelis in the West Bank – a apply Israeli rights teams have criticised as collective punishment.
Netanyahu likened the operation to earlier operations in Palestinian refugee camps in the north of the territory, when the Israeli army demolished lots of of properties and displaced tens of hundreds in 2025.
Friday’s capturing came during a tense time for the area, with Israel’s common election happening in 4 days’ time.
Netanyahu – who has constructed his marketing campaign on the promise of security – cancelled his occasion’s marketing campaign occasions for Friday morning and headed to Hebron, carrying protecting armour and posting a video on social media from the scene.
“We will evacuate the residents, go house to house, remove the weapons we find there, and deal with and destroy all terrorist infrastructure,” he said.
He also announced he had reviewed plans for the largest army operation in the West Bank since 1967 – though did not say when it could be carried out. It is not clear whether the ongoing Hebron operation types half of that.
In an interview with Israel’s i24 tv channel launched on Saturday, he threatened “a very big surprise” for the Palestinian Authority (PA), which governs elements of the territory.
In a assertion, the PA called for “urgent international action that went beyond condemnation” to stop further pressured displacement.
Meanwhile, his far-right Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich called for Israel to launch a marketing campaign in the West Bank “exactly like in Gaza or Lebanon,” while far-right National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir called for Israel to dismantle the PA.
Speaking to journalists, Hebron’s mayor said the operation was “driven by the elections,” and that Netanyahu and his ministers were making an attempt to secure the votes of the far-right and the settlers.
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