Israeli forces begin demolitions in Hebron after checkpoint attack
Israeli forces began demolishing Palestinian buildings after gunmen attacked a checkpoint near Hebron. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu announced cordons around Hebron and Halhul and plans for a wider West Bank operation, without setting a date. The demolitions came days before Israel’s election. Rights organisations have criticised the demolition of suspected attackers’ homes as collective punishment.
Geopolitics··Night
Demolitions follow the checkpoint shooting
Israeli forces began demolishing Palestinian buildings on 23 October after a shooting at a military checkpoint near Hebron, a Palestinian city in the occupied West Bank. Afternoon footage showed diggers bringing down homes. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said the neighbourhood he identified as the attackers’ home would be demolished and transformed. He announced a broad military response to the attack and measures restricting movement around the city.[1], [2]
Footage verified by the BBC showed an exchange of fire between Palestinian gunmen and Israeli soldiers. Armed men were seen leaving a car and firing before coming under return fire. The Israeli military said it found substantial ammunition in the vehicle and believed a larger attack on nearby Route 35 had been planned. That account of the intended target was the military’s assessment.[1]
Netanyahu shifts from territory-wide closure to city cordons
Netanyahu initially ordered a siege of Hebron and a complete closure of the West Bank. Within hours, he indicated that he would consider cordons around Hebron and Halhul, another Palestinian city in the territory. He also said cordons had been imposed around those cities. He described preparations for a wider operation but gave no date for carrying it out. The afternoon demolitions were already under way while the broader operation remained at the planning stage.[1], [2]
He invoked the strategy used around Jenin, a Palestinian city in the northern West Bank. Israeli troops launched a campaign against armed groups in three refugee camps there in early 2025, demolishing hundreds of homes and displacing thousands of Palestinians. Netanyahu said the planned response around Hebron involved evacuating residents, searching houses, removing weapons and destroying infrastructure he described as belonging to armed groups.[2]
The response comes days before Israel’s election
Israel’s parliamentary election is scheduled for 27 October. Netanyahu’s Likud party cancelled campaign events planned for Friday morning after the attack. Opposition politicians Gadi Eisenkot and Naftali Bennett offered condolences to the soldiers’ families. Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich called for a wider West Bank campaign, while National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir demanded the dismantling of the Palestinian Authority. Israeli rights organisations have criticised demolishing suspected attackers’ homes as collective punishment. Netanyahu also addressed Israeli settlers after the attack, promising to strengthen their settlements and build infrastructure. Those settlements in the West Bank are illegal under international law.[1], [2]
