Israel Orders West Bank Closure After Soldiers Kill Two Gunmen Near Hebron Days Before Election
At least five people were wounded, some critically. Netanyahu blames Hamas and says the group was planning a major attack as Israelis prepare to vote Tuesday.
Israeli soldiers shot and killed two men on Friday morning whom the military said had launched an attack near the city of Hebron in the occupied West Bank. At least five people were injured, including some critically, the Associated Press reported.
The army said it prevented a "terror attack against Israeli civilians" and that the gunmen carried an M16 rifle and a handgun. It did not say what the target was, and there was no word on the identities of the two dead or of those hurt. Emergency responders said gunfire was still ongoing when they arrived at the scene near the Yehuda Junction. Two men in their 20s had gunshot wounds to their lower limbs, and another was unconscious and seriously injured. "We arrived at a difficult scene while shooting was still taking place in the area," said Tzuriel Edri of the response team. An investigation was underway.
A few hours later, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's office said it had instructed security forces to immediately cordon off Hebron and prepare to fully close the entire West Bank, starting Friday. Netanyahu held an emergency meeting of his Security Cabinet with top military and security officials. He blamed Hamas, saying the militant group was "planning a major attack aimed at murdering innocent civilians." He praised the troops. "Our brave soldiers thwarted this attack with courage and determination," he said, and wished the wounded a speedy recovery. He did not say whether the wounded were soldiers or civilians.
Israel's far-right national security minister, Itamar Ben-Gvir, used the attack to argue for tighter limits on Palestinians. The lives of settlers, soldiers and police officers, he said, are "a million times more important than freedom of movement."
The shooting comes as Israeli voters decide next Tuesday whether to give Netanyahu another term or usher in a new era in Israeli politics. The vote comes three years after the Hamas-led attacks of Oct. 7, 2023, that triggered the war in Gaza. The government has warned of possible attacks by the country's "enemies" in the run-up to the election, and Netanyahu said Hamas could strike in an effort to influence the outcome. He offered no evidence for that claim.
The army said soldiers and Israeli security and intelligence agencies carried out dozens of operations across the West Bank on Friday and detained dozens of people, including some affiliated with Hamas and Islamic Jihad. It said it found weapons, including M16 rifles and submachine guns.
Closures like this one are becoming routine. It is the fourth time in the past month that Israel has imposed restrictions across the territory, shutting gates and checkpoints that connect Palestinian villages to major roads. Israeli roads in the West Bank remain open to Israeli drivers, including settlers, who can still travel through the area but may face delays.
The closure lands during a tense stretch. Earlier this month, European diplomats said Israeli settlers beat them in the village of Taybeh, and the olive harvest has produced repeated clashes. Palestinian movement, already restricted, is now curtailed further just as the country heads to the polls.
