Hebron sealed and homes demolished after two soldiers killed at checkpoint

Israeli military forces sealed off Hebron, the West Bank's largest city, and evicted nearly 2,000 residents from the Ein Deir Baha district following a gun attack that killed two soldiers on Friday. The operation took place just two days before Israel's general election, placing the city at the center of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's campaign on security.

The conflict began on Friday when gunmen attacked an Israeli military checkpoint. Both attackers were killed at the scene. In response, Netanyahu and Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich made televised visits to the area. The ruling coalition is currently trailing in the polls, and the prime minister warned of military operations on a scale not seen in the West Bank since the start of the occupation nearly 60 years ago.

Within hours of the shooting, the city of 250,000 was sealed. Military bulldozers flattened the Farsh al-Hawa neighborhood, which was closest to the attack site. By Sunday morning, only rubble remained where car workshops and a large ceramics plant had previously stood. Meanwhile, forces moved to the Ein Deir Baha district, a few kilometers away, which officials said was home to at least one of the shooters.

The Hebron municipality stated that 370 families were displaced by the army's sweep. The Israeli army claimed residents left voluntarily and were permitted to evacuate temporarily. Fahed Ahmaro, a local imam, rejected this account. He described being woken at midnight by loudspeakers on military vehicles ordering homeowners to leave. Ahmaro, who had 30 family members in his house, took his mother and grandchildren to a relative's home. He said he returned to find the army had blown up his gates.

Abdul Halim al-Tamimi, 77, said military forces arrived at his home at 1:30 a.m. on Saturday. He reported that an intelligence officer gave his family 10 minutes to leave and threatened them with displacement similar to what happened in Gaza if they refused. After three military vehicles confronted the family standing outside, they were forced out at 3 a.m. By Sunday morning, the family's villa had been draped in Israeli flags and converted into a temporary army headquarters.

The army stated that approximately 2,000 local residents belonged to the Jaba'a clan, which it described as associated with Hamas. Residents of Ein Deir Baha disputed this, arguing the clan contains at most 150 people and has no known reputation for radicalism. Al-Tamimi said his family belongs to a different clan and suggested the operation served election publicity purposes.

As of Sunday evening, all roads in and out of Hebron remained closed to vehicles behind steel barriers. Only pedestrians could move through the city. Wasam Sadi, a delivery truck driver, said settlers attacked him at a nearby junction, smashing his windshield and putting glass in his eyes. Hebron Mayor Yousef al-Jabari described the measures as collective punishment. Palestinians in the West Bank cannot vote on Tuesday, but the election outcome may affect their lives.