Netanyahu Orders Hebron Buildings Razed After Checkpoint Attack

Israeli military crews began dismantling Palestinian buildings in Hebron on Thursday. The action follows a shootout at a checkpoint outside the city that left two soldiers dead and three others wounded. Both Palestinian gunmen involved in the attack were killed.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu visited the site and declared that the military would "demolish this place and completely transform it." He referred to the specific neighborhood from which the attackers are believed to have emerged. Netanyahu stated that Israel was prepared for "extensive action" in the occupied West Bank, drawing parallels to previous operations in refugee camps that displaced thousands of residents.

The prime minister also revealed that he has reviewed plans for the largest military operation in the West Bank in decades, though he did not provide a start date. He imposed cordons around Hebron, a city with approximately 200,000 inhabitants, and the nearby town of Halhul. The military reported finding a large quantity of ammunition in the attackers' vehicle. Officials believe the gunmen intended to strike Route 35 but opened fire at the checkpoint instead.

The incident has already impacted the election campaign, with Israel scheduled to vote in four days. Netanyahu has built his campaign around security promises. His Likud party cancelled campaign events planned for Friday morning in response to the attack. Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich called for a campaign in the West Bank similar to those conducted in Gaza and Lebanon. National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir urged the dismantling of the Palestinian Authority.

Political tensions surfaced on Thursday when Foreign Minister Israel Katz accused opposition leaders of undermining the government. He criticized their remarks about Netanyahu's warnings of an attack before the vote and stated they would be "responsible" for any future incidents. Opposition figures, including frontrunner Gadi Eisenkot and former Prime Minister Naftali Bennett, offered condolences to the families of the deceased soldiers and praised the troops who killed the attackers.

Israeli rights groups have long criticized the practice of demolishing homes belonging to suspects' families, labeling it collective punishment. The West Bank has experienced high tension in recent weeks, with extremist Jewish settlers targeting Palestinians during the annual olive harvest. The United Nations reports that at least 96 Palestinians have been killed by Israeli forces or settlers in the territory since the start of the year. Over the same period, four Israelis, both security personnel and civilians, have been killed by Palestinians, a figure that excludes the two soldiers from Thursday's attack.