Israel orders 250,000 residents of Hebron to leave after checkpoint killings

Approximately 250,000 people in Hebron, the largest Palestinian city in the occupied West Bank, now face forced displacement and mass demolitions following a deadly encounter at a border checkpoint. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu announced a siege on Hebron and the neighboring town of Halhul on Friday, declaring that residents of the gunmen's home neighborhoods would be evacuated. He stated that plans are underway for the largest military operation in the West Bank since 1967, though no specific start date has been set.

The orders follow an attack in which two men armed with an assault rifle and a handgun killed two Israeli soldiers and wounded three others. The gunmen, driving a vehicle with Israeli number plates, opened fire after being stopped at a temporary checkpoint outside Hebron. A gunfight lasting 20 minutes ended with both men dead, according to the Israeli military.

Demolition work began within hours of the shooting. Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich posted a video of himself standing before a bulldozer as it tore down a Palestinian home near the scene. He described the structure, which had been built without permits, as a measure to create deterrence and exact a price. No connection was claimed between the building's owners and the attackers.

Defence Minister Israel Katz explicitly compared the planned operations in Hebron to the treatment of the Jenin refugee camp, where nearly 20,000 people have been displaced. Katz stated that every clan neighborhood from which the terrorists emerged would be evacuated. He promised further mass demolitions and forced displacement, drawing a direct parallel to tactics used in Gaza.

Legal challenges arrived quickly. Shortly after demolition work commenced, Israel's high court issued a temporary order halting the removal of structures. Human rights lawyer Mohammed Dahleh filed an urgent petition on behalf of two nearby factory owners. He argued that the actions breached international law regarding collective punishment as well as Israeli administrative law. Dahleh described the move as an attempt to copy illegal practices from Gaza in the heart of the West Bank.

Michael Sfard, a leading Israeli lawyer, characterized Smotrich's video as a direct admission that the demolitions constitute collective punishment. He noted that deterrence has served as a justification for such measures since antiquity. The legal intervention marks a rare pause in the immediate enforcement of the government's new security measures.

Tensions escalated further when prominent figures, including a candidate for the far-right Amcha Yisrael party, shared conspiracy theories linking an AFP photographer to the gunmen. The photographer had witnessed the exchange while en route to another assignment. The Foreign Press Association called the claims dangerous and defamatory, noting the photographer is a longtime professional. This incident occurred one week after settlers severely injured photographer Heidi Levine during the olive harvest.

The campaign for collective punishment arrives as the governing far-right coalition faces elections on Tuesday. Polls suggest the coalition may lose its majority. Since the attacks of 7 October 2023, the West Bank has seen a surge in settlement expansion and violence, with more than 1,100 Palestinians killed by Israeli forces or settlers. National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir visited Hebron on Friday to demand the dismantling of the Palestinian Authority and tighter limits on movement.