Netanyahu Orders House-to-House Hebron Offensive Four Days Before Israel Votes

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Friday ordered troops into the Hebron neighbourhoods that two Palestinian gunmen came from, telling residents to expect evacuations, house-to-house searches and demolitions. Standing in a flak jacket at the scene of the attack, he also said the army had prepared a far wider operation across the occupied West Bank. The announcement came four days before Israelis vote in a general election that will decide whether he stays in power.

What happened at the checkpoint

The trigger was a shootout at an Israeli military checkpoint in Hebron, the largest Palestinian city in the southern West Bank. Two gunmen opened fire and a gun battle followed that, by Israeli accounts, lasted about 20 minutes. Two Israeli soldiers were killed and three were wounded. Both attackers were shot dead.

Israeli security forces identified the gunmen as Mohammad Jaaba and Firas Jaaba, two 27-year-old men from the same family. The military said the amount of ammunition found in their car showed they had planned a larger shooting aimed at Israeli civilians. Hamas praised the attack in a statement but did not claim it.

The response: sealed cities and a wider plan

Netanyahu's office first ordered the army to cordon off Hebron and prepare for a possible closure of the entire West Bank. By the evening, he had gone further. He said Hebron and the nearby town of Halhul would be sealed, and that troops would apply the same aggressive model used in recent raids on refugee camps in the northern West Bank.

He added that he and Defence Minister Israel Katz had reviewed plans for a broad military operation in the territory on a scale not seen since the 1967 Six-Day War. He did not give a date, saying only that the army was ready and the timing would be decided later.

In the same appearance, Netanyahu praised Israeli settlers, calling them a role model for the country, and promised to speed up the clearing of what he described as illegal Palestinian homes along roads used by the army. He also pledged to expand settlement building. Most of the international community considers the settlements illegal under international law.

Why the timing matters

Tuesday's vote is the first national election since the security failures that allowed the Hamas-led attack of October 7, 2023. Netanyahu's handling of that day, the hostage crisis that followed and his resistance to a full state inquiry are central issues in the campaign. There had been widespread concern that any escalation in violence could be used to bolster his security credentials in the final days of the race.

The West Bank was already tense before Friday. Settler attacks on Palestinian farmers have been rising, and Israeli forces have carried out large arrest sweeps across the territory. A full closure would sharply restrict movement for the roughly three million Palestinians who live there.

Netanyahu's election contest had already taken on an international dimension, with US President Donald Trump endorsing him earlier this month (see our earlier coverage). How far the army goes in Hebron over the weekend, and whether the wider operation starts before polling day, are now the key questions for the final stretch of the campaign.

This is an original summary based on public reporting. See our editorial policy for how we source, write, and correct our stories.