Netanyahu Orders Hebron Cordon

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu ordered a major military operation in the West Bank on Friday.

The directive followed a shooting attack that killed two Israeli soldiers near Hebron.

The two gunmen opened fire at a junction and were killed by forces at the scene. The army identified the dead soldiers as Staff Sergeant Ron Yonatan Roytman and Sergeant Yuval Shai Svilem. Three other soldiers sustained light injuries.

The military recovered a large quantity of weapons and ammunition from the attackers' vehicle. The army stated that the M16 rifle and handgun found on the scene pointed to a plan for a major attack on civilians.

Netanyahu ordered the evacuation of residents in the neighborhood where the gunmen lived. He instructed troops to begin house-to-house searches for weapons. He described the initial step as demolishing the site and completely transforming it. Hebron has more than 200,000 inhabitants.

The Prime Minister said the IDF would enter the neighborhoods from which the terrorists emerged. He stated that forces would dismantle the terror infrastructure. He added that Israel was prepared for an extensive operation in Judea and Samaria.

Hamas described the gunmen as heroes and called the attack a legitimate response to ongoing crimes. The group did not claim responsibility but urged armed Palestinians in the West Bank to attack Israeli soldiers and civilians. The Israeli military confirmed it had begun offensive counterterrorism operations in the Hebron area. Soldiers are currently operating inside the homes of the attackers and other suspects.

The military reported the arrest of around 70 wanted Palestinians in West Bank operations over the past week. This escalation occurs days before Israeli elections scheduled for Tuesday. Netanyahu made national security a central theme of his campaign for another term. He characterized the shooting as an attempt to influence the vote. His Likud party announced that senior security chiefs convened on Friday and that all campaign events for the day were canceled. The attack follows a recent surge in violence in the region. It also came after Brad Lander, a New York Democratic candidate for Congress, was briefly detained by Israeli forces while helping Palestinian farmers during the olive harvest.