Netanyahu Orders Evacuations in Hebron After Two Soldiers Killed

Two Israeli soldiers died in a shooting near Hebron on Friday, prompting Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to order a military cordon of the city and the evacuation of its residents. The attack was carried out by two Palestinian men who opened fire at a junction. Israeli forces killed both gunmen at the scene.

The army identified the fallen soldiers as Staff Sergeant Ron Yonatan Roytman and Sergeant Yuval Shai Svilem. Three other service members sustained minor injuries. Investigators recovered a large amount of weapons and ammunition from the attackers' vehicle. The military stated that the armament, which included an M16 rifle and a handgun, indicated the shooters planned a major strike on civilians.

Netanyahu said he ordered troops to clear the neighborhood where the gunmen lived before launching a house-to-house search for weapons. He told residents they would be evacuated to make way for the operation. The prime minister stated that the first step would be to demolish the site and transform it. Hebron has a population of more than 200,000 people.

The Israeli government described the operation as the start of a wider campaign. Netanyahu said the military would enter neighborhoods where the attackers emerged, evacuate residents, and dismantle what he called the terror infrastructure. He added that Israel was prepared for an extensive operation in Judea and Samaria, the name the country uses for the West Bank.

Hamas, which does not claim responsibility for the shooting, called the attack a heroic response to ongoing crimes against Palestinians. The group urged armed factions in the West Bank to target Israeli soldiers and civilians. Netanyahu labeled the gunmen as Hamas terrorists, noting that the organization is designated a terrorist group by Israel and the United States.

The escalation occurred days before Israeli elections scheduled for Tuesday. Netanyahu has made national security a central theme of his campaign for another term. He characterized the shooting as an attempt by enemies to influence the vote, recalling a warning he issued weeks earlier about planned attacks before the election. His Likud party canceled all campaign events for the rest of Friday following a meeting with senior security chiefs.

Israeli forces have arrested approximately 70 wanted Palestinians in West Bank operations over the past week. The attack follows a recent increase in violence in the region. It also happened after Brad Lander, a New York Democratic congressional candidate, was briefly detained by Israeli troops while assisting Palestinian farmers with the annual olive harvest.