Hebron Demolition: 1,500 Residents Evicted in Two-Day Sweep
Local officials say troops destroyed 35 hectares of the Ein Deir Baha district following a fatal attack on a checkpoint.
By Sarah Montgomery ·
The Hebron municipality reported that approximately 1,500 residents were forced from their homes by Saturday afternoon. Local authorities stated that the figure represents the number of people displaced as Israeli troops carried out a two-day demolition operation in the city.
The military action targeted the Ein Deir Baha district, an area the municipality estimated to be 35 hectares in size. Officials said structures within this zone were either destroyed or marked for destruction. The city, which has a population of 250,000, was sealed off with checkpoints established at every point of entry during the operation.
The demolitions followed a Friday attack by two gunmen on an Israeli military checkpoint outside Hebron. After a 20-minute exchange of fire, two Israeli soldiers died and three were wounded. Both gunmen were killed in the engagement. Local authorities alleged that the Ein Deir Baha district was the home base for the attackers.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich visited the checkpoint site and vowed a strong response. Netanyahu stated that Israel would "act to destroy this place." Smotrich, who is running for election with a smaller coalition party, filmed himself in body armor while a nearby Palestinian building was demolished. He said he ordered the "immediate demolition of a wide row of illegal Arab structures adjacent to the attack site" and called for a "comprehensive military campaign" similar to operations in Gaza and Lebanon.
Videos shared by a resident showed multiple urban blocks reduced to rubble. Footage included soldiers spraying black crosses on houses and a bulldozer removing a stone wall on a hillside. One clip showed a large residential building draped in Israeli flags. Residents identified the property as belonging to a prominent family and said it was being used as a temporary military headquarters.
A municipality spokesperson confirmed that roughly 300 families had been evicted. Some displaced residents stayed with friends or relatives, while others were housed in community halls and children's play areas provided by the city. The Palestinian news agency Wafa reported that Israel plans to displace an additional 2,500 people in the coming days.
Issa Amro, a Hebron civil rights activist, criticized the operation as collective punishment. He stated, "We are being collectively punished for something we neither did nor supported." Amro added that his sister's family was among those driven from their homes. In a telephone interview, he noted that many displaced families had no connection to Friday's attack and questioned whether the action was purely election propaganda or part of a larger post-election plan. The Israeli army was approached for comment on the operations and the videos showing the destruction.
