Hebron lockdown: 2,200 residents ordered out after West Bank raids
Israeli forces have closed Hebron's entrances and exits, displacing residents days before parliamentary elections on October 27.
By Carmen Wojcik ·
Israeli troops ordered residents out of their homes in Hebron late at night, and Yousef al-Ja'bari, the city's mayor, said 2,200 people have been forced from their dwellings. The military has conducted raids across the occupied West Bank since two Israeli reserve soldiers were killed. The Palestinian Authority asked for international pressure on Israel to protect the city's residents.
The sequence began on Friday, when two Palestinian gunmen attacked an Israeli army reserve base. Both gunmen were killed, along with the two Israeli soldiers. Soldiers used loudspeakers to announce evacuation orders after dark, and families had little time to prepare and few places to go. Al-Ja'bari said that on Saturday no one could enter or leave the city. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu then ordered a full lockdown of the West Bank. Journalists documenting a bulldozing operation near the Farsh al-Hawa checkpoint in Hebron were fired upon with a stun grenade by soldiers.
Israeli forces raided at least 15 areas of the West Bank on Saturday. The locations included Jenin and Nablus in the north; Ramallah, Al-Bireh, Birzeit and occupied East Jerusalem in the centre; and Bethlehem in the south. The Palestinian Prisoners' Society said about 70 Palestinians were arrested in the raids.
The Palestinian Authority, which governs the West Bank, called the actions collective punishment, citing home demolitions, the forced displacement of entire neighbourhoods, and the closure and siege of Palestinian cities. Hamas said in a statement that campaigns carried out by Israeli forces and settlers against Palestinians will fuel further outrage. About 200,000 Palestinians live in Hebron, and another 600,000 live elsewhere in Hebron governorate, the most populous in the West Bank. Issa Amro, a Hebron-based activist and political analyst, said those 800,000 people are under siege with all entrances and exits closed since morning, adding that there is no safe place for anyone to hide inside the city.
Israeli parliamentary elections are scheduled for October 27. Nour Odeh, a West Bank correspondent, said politicians are attempting to capitalise on the attack, noting that Netanyahu, his Likud party and right-wing coalition allies trail in the polls and are trying to project strength. Netanyahu did not say whether he plans to dismantle the Palestinian Authority, but said a big surprise awaits the organisation.
