Israel launches ‘large-scale’ military raid in occupied West Bank’s Hebron

Hundreds of soldiers backed by armoured vehicles raid the Palestinian city, imposing a lockdown and installing caller robust gates.

The Israeli subject has launched a “large-scale” cognition successful Hebron successful the confederate occupied West Bank, deploying hundreds of soldiers and dense machinery successful a determination that has paralysed the city’s confederate districts.

In a associated connection issued connected Monday, the Israeli service and the interior information service, Shin Bet, confirmed the offensive, stating it aims to “thwart panic infrastructure” and confiscate weapons successful the Jebel Johar area.

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The service warned the cognition would proceed for “several days”.

‘Defensive Shield’ tactics

Reporting from the scene, Al Jazeera Arabic’s analogous Montaser Nassar described a authorities of full lockdown.

“We are successful the alleged confederate portion of Hebron, which has been nether a curfew since dawn,” Nassar said. “There is an intensive deployment of concern forces … including bulldozers and tracked armoured vehicles.”

“We witnessed tracked armoured vehicles … the past clip we saw these successful Hebron was during the 2nd Intifada during [Israeli] Operation Defensive Shield,” helium said, noting the value of the dense equipment.

‘Dividing the divided’

While the service cited “counterterrorism goals”, Nassar observed soldiers installing caller metallic barriers, informing of a semipermanent tightening of control.

“They brought successful robust gates a abbreviated portion ago, and this is the unsafe part,” Nassar said. “It seems that what is happening connected the crushed is simply a prelude to dividing the already divided.”

Video footage verified by section sources showed Israeli forces closing the Tariq bin Ziyad roundabout with cement blocks and world mounds. Palestinian quality bureau Wafa reported astatine slightest 7 arrests.

Mosque nether pressure

Nassar pointed retired that the raid is taking spot little than fractional a kilometre from the Ibrahimi Mosque, pursuing caller Israeli moves to portion Palestinian authorization implicit the site.

“This comes aft a determination to prohibition the manager of the Ibrahimi Mosque … for 15 days,” Nassar explained, noting that absorption of the tract is being transferred to the Israeli Civil Administration.

Since the opening of the Israeli genocidal warfare connected Gaza successful October 2023, much than 1,080 Palestinians person been killed successful the West Bank, astir 11,000 injured, and immoderate 20,500 arrested, according to authoritative Palestinian sources.