35 Hectares Destroyed in Hebron as Election Nears
Local authorities say 1,500 residents have been displaced following a military operation in the Ein Deir Baha district.
By Sakura Novak ·
Israeli forces have cleared 35 hectares of land in the Ein Deir Baha district of Hebron, displacing approximately 1,500 residents as of Saturday afternoon. The Hebron municipality reported that the area was either destroyed or marked for demolition, with the city sealed off by checkpoints at all entry points.
The operation followed a Friday attack by two gunmen on an Israeli military checkpoint outside the city. After a 20-minute exchange, two soldiers were killed and three were wounded. Both assailants were killed in the engagement. Local officials identified Ein Deir Baha as the gunmen's home district and described the subsequent clearing as a form of collective punishment.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich visited the checkpoint site and pledged a forceful response. Netanyahu stated that Israel would "act to destroy this place." Smotrich, who is running for office with a smaller coalition party, ordered the "immediate demolition of a wide row of illegal Arab structures adjacent to the attack site." He also called for a comprehensive military campaign similar to those conducted in Gaza and Lebanon.
Residents documented the destruction through video clips showing urban blocks reduced to rubble. One clip showed soldiers marking Palestinian houses with black crosses, while another captured a bulldozer removing a stone wall on a hillside. A large residential building, which residents said belonged to a prominent local family, was draped in Israeli flags and used as a temporary military headquarters.
Issa Amro, a civil rights activist in Hebron, criticized the scale of the eviction. "We are being collectively punished for something we neither did nor supported," Amro said. He noted that his sister's family was among those forced from their homes. Amro questioned whether the operation was purely election propaganda or part of a longer-term plan for the region.
The municipality spokesperson confirmed that roughly 300 families had been evicted. Some residents found shelter with relatives, while the city opened community halls and play areas to accommodate others. The Palestinian news agency Wafa reported that Israel intends to displace an additional 2,500 people.
Israeli general elections are scheduled for four days from now. The Israeli army has not yet responded to requests for comment regarding the extent of the demolitions or the footage of the operations.
