Hebron Lockdown: Seven Days of Raids and Displacement

Israeli forces have maintained a military blockade of Hebron for seven days.

The operation follows the killing of two Israeli soldiers near the settlement of Telem last week. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu ordered the closure of the city via social media, stating an intention to "destroy this place" and change it completely. He also directed security forces to prepare for a potential full lockdown of the entire occupied West Bank, which Israel refers to as Judea and Samaria.

The blockade has severely restricted movement, closing all entrances and exits to the city. More than 3,000 residents have been forced out of Hebron as military units converted local homes into barracks and posts. In the Masafer Yatta region south of the city, 12 villages and hamlets were isolated. This isolation cut off farmers from markets and prevented dozens of patients who require daily care from reaching hospitals.

Violence has escalated between Israeli settlers and Palestinian residents. On Wednesday, settlers assaulted three foreign journalists, including Andrey Ilyich Khrzhanovskiy, also known as Andrey X. Khrzhanovskiy lost consciousness and was detained at a police station without medical attention. On Thursday, settlers attacked Palestinians and their vehicles in the Ras al-Joura area. According to the Wafa news agency, two Palestinians were injured and seven were detained during these incidents.

Military operations included large-scale demolitions and raids on residential neighborhoods. In the Ein Deir Bahha neighborhood, troops forced dozens of families to flee their homes at night without belongings. Footage showed soldiers beating Hijazi Shawer, a 70-year-old shopkeeper. Israeli forces also fired tear gas at Al-Ahli Hospital. The Palestinian Prisoner’s Society reported that at least 110 people have been detained in the Hebron governorate since the raids began, including three women and seven children.

The economic impact is substantial. Hebron produces about 40 percent of Palestinian industrial output and 30 percent of exports. Settlers uprooted more than 200 fruit trees and destroyed water wells east of the city. They also prevented farmers from harvesting olives. These actions disrupt local livelihoods and supply chains in one of the West Bank's key economic hubs.

Palestinian officials and human rights groups have criticized the operation. The organization Al-Haq stated that the siege violates international law and constitutes a prohibited act of aggression. The Israeli NGO B’Tselem described the operation as an act of collective punishment rather than a security measure. UN Human Rights Chief Volker Turk said collective punishment is a grave violation of international law and that threats to empty neighborhoods raise concerns of ethnic cleansing.

Roland Friedrich, the director of UNRWA Affairs for the West Bank, noted that the current situation echoes the displacement seen in northern West Bank camps in early 2025. More than 34,000 refugees from Jenin, Tulkarem, and Nur Shams remain displaced over a year later. Muhammed Shehada of the Euro-Med Human Rights Monitor told Al Jazeera that the government is using collective punishment to deter reactions to displacement, arguing that the goal is to advance de facto annexation by making life in the West Bank difficult.