Hebron sealed off after checkpoint shooting displaces nearly 2,000 residents

The largest city in the West Bank is now the stage for Israel's final campaign push.

On Friday, gunmen attacked an Israeli military checkpoint in Hebron, killing two soldiers. Both attackers were shot dead at the scene. Within hours of the violence, the city of 250,000 was sealed off from the outside world.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich appeared on television to address the nation. Their coalition currently trails in the polls with two days of campaigning left. The leaders promised rapid retribution. Netanyahu warned that the military would launch operations on a scale the West Bank has not seen in nearly 60 years.

Israeli forces moved quickly to enforce the new security posture. The neighborhood of Farsh al-Hawa, located closest to the attack site, was leveled by bulldozers. By Sunday morning, an industrial area containing car workshops and a large ceramics plant was reduced to rubble.

In a separate district called Ein Deir Baha, military forces ordered residents to leave. The army alleged that at least one of the attackers lived there. Fahed Ahmaro, the imam of the local mosque, was woken at midnight by loudspeakers on military vehicles. He was ordered to leave immediately for his own safety.

Ahmaro had thirty family members living in his home. He moved his frail mother and several grandchildren to his daughter's house. When he returned to collect belongings, a neighbor told him the army had blown up his gates. Ahmaro was still shopping for clothes on Sunday, uncertain how long his family would be displaced.

The Hebron municipality reported that 370 families, or nearly 2,000 people, were displaced from Ein Deir Baha. The Israeli army stated that residents left voluntarily and that civilians were allowed to evacuate temporarily. Ahmaro rejected this account. He asked why he should leave his house if the move was truly voluntary.

Abdul Halim al-Tamimi, 77, described a different timeline. He said military vehicles arrived at 1:30 a.m. and gave his family ten minutes to pack. An intelligence officer warned that if they refused, they would be displaced in the manner used in Gaza. The family stood outside until three military vehicles confronted them. They were forced out at 3 a.m. By Sunday morning, their villa was draped in Israeli flags and served as a temporary army headquarters.

The army identified the residents as members of the Jaba'a clan, which it associated with Hamas. The military claimed about 2,000 locals belonged to this group. Residents of the district disputed this number. They said the clan contains at most 150 people and has no known reputation for radicalism. Tamimi said his family belongs to a different clan and suggested the operation was designed for election publicity.

By Sunday evening, all roads entering and leaving Hebron were blocked by steel barriers. Only pedestrians could pass. Wasam Sadi, a delivery truck driver, arrived at a checkpoint with a smashed windshield. He said settlers had attacked him at a nearby junction. Mayor Yousef al-Jabari called the measures collective punishment. He noted that Palestinians in the West Bank cannot vote on Tuesday, though the result will affect their lives.