Prime Minister Netanyahu Travels to Hebron as Army Levels Buildings

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu arrived in the occupied West Bank city of Hebron wearing protective armor on Friday morning. He paused his campaign schedule to inspect the site of a recent checkpoint attack where two Israeli soldiers were killed and three were wounded. Both Palestinian gunmen involved in the shooting were killed. Netanyahu declared that buildings near the attack site and the neighborhoods the shooters came from would be destroyed.

The Israel Defense Forces launched a large-scale operation in the city following the announcement. Bulldozers have demolished homes, businesses, and infrastructure in the Ein Deir Baha and Farsh al-Hawa neighborhoods. Footage circulating online shows at least one entire street leveled. The army has sealed off Hebron, restricting the movement of its 200,000 residents. A statement from the military noted that it has dozens of targets across the West Bank and that operations would continue for several days.

Local officials say the displacement is already underway. The city's governor and deputy mayor reported that at least 200 families have been displaced. Mayor Youssef al-Jaabari stated that dozens of families were forced to spend the night outdoors, some without their vehicles. He added that houses are being marked for demolition with spray paint. Al-Jaabari estimates the military intends to displace 2,500 people from roughly 0.35 square kilometers of urban land.

The timing of the operation coincides with the Israeli general election, which is scheduled for four days from now. Netanyahu, whose campaign emphasizes security, posted a video from the scene where he said the army would go house to house to remove weapons and destroy terrorist infrastructure. He also mentioned reviewing plans for the largest military operation in the West Bank since 1967, though he did not specify a timeline for that separate campaign.

Al-Jaabari told journalists that the operation was driven by the upcoming elections. He said Netanyahu and his ministers were attempting to secure votes from the far right and settler communities. The Palestinian Authority called for urgent international action beyond condemnation to prevent further forced displacement. Within the Israeli government, Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich urged a campaign similar to those in Gaza and Lebanon, while National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir called for the dismantling of the Palestinian Authority.

Israeli rights groups have criticized the practice of demolishing homes of Palestinians suspected of attacks as collective punishment. Netanyahu compared the current Hebron operation to earlier campaigns in northern refugee camps in 2025, where the military destroyed hundreds of homes and displaced tens of thousands of people. The IDF did not immediately answer requests for comment regarding the specific scope of the current demolition drive.