Netanyahu Vows Major West Bank Operation After Deadly Checkpoint Attack
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu vowed a massive West Bank operation after two Palestinian gunmen killed two Israeli soldiers and wounded three at a checkpoint near Hebron on Thursday, October 22, 2026.[1]
In a televised address from the attack site, Netanyahu promised an operation "on a scale not seen since the Six Day War" and said he would demolish and "change" the neighborhood linked to the attackers.[1] By Friday afternoon, Israeli forces had begun bulldozing homes and forcibly evacuating hundreds of Palestinians in a Hebron-area neighborhood.[1]
On Thursday, October 22, 2026, two Palestinian gunmen opened fire on an Israeli checkpoint near Hebron, killing two soldiers and wounding three. Israel imposed broad movement closures around Hebron on Saturday, and the U.N. has documented a surge in settler violence and land seizures across the occupied West Bank.
Human rights groups, including B'Tselem and Human Rights Watch, warned foreign governments to act to prevent "another wave of ethnic cleansing and war crimes" as the military operation unfolds.
Show source details & analysis (1 source)
📌 Key Facts
- On Thursday, October 22, 2026, two Palestinian gunmen opened fire on an Israeli checkpoint near Hebron, killing two soldiers and wounding three others.
- In an October 23 televised address from the attack site, Netanyahu vowed a West Bank operation 'on a scale not seen since the Six Day War' and to demolish and 'change' the neighborhood linked to the attackers.
- By Friday afternoon, October 23, Israeli forces had begun bulldozing homes and forcibly evacuating hundreds of Palestinians in a Hebron-area neighborhood.
- B'Tselem warned foreign governments to act to prevent 'another wave of ethnic cleansing and war crimes,' echoing earlier Human Rights Watch criticism of similar mass expulsions.
- Israel imposed broad movement closures around Hebron on Saturday, while the UN has documented a surge in settler violence and land seizures across the occupied West Bank.
📰 Source Timeline (1)
Follow how coverage of this story developed over time