Israeli security forces launched a counterterrorism operation in the Hebron area of Judea on Friday in response to the terrorist attack earlier in the day in which two Israeli soldiers were killed and three others were wounded, the Israel Defense Forces said.
IDF troops, the Israeli Security Agency (Shin Bet), Border Police officers, and personnel from the Israel Police Judea District Coordination and Liaison Administration have begun conducting thorough searches throughout the area to locate and dismantle terrorist infrastructure and weapons, while questioning suspects, the military said.
“The operation is targeted and limited to the area from which the terrorists operated, and is expected to continue for several days,” the IDF said.
People living in the area will be given the opportunity to leave through three designated exit points, following a security screening process, the military said.
In addition, the residences of the two terrorists who carried out the shooting attack have been mapped in preparation for their demolition and a cordon on the Hebron and Halhul areas has been imposed, the IDF said.
Moreover, preparations are underway to demolish illegal Palestinian structures in the area that could pose a security threat.
The military meanwhile continues to operate at dozens of locations throughout Judea and Samaria to prevent terrorist attacks, address security threats and protect Israeli civilians, the army added.
Two Ari Battalion soldiers KIA
Friday’s shooting attack took place near the Yehuda Junction in the Hebron area.
The IDF identified the slain soldiers as Staff Sgt. Ron Yonatan Roytman, 23, from Ashkelon, a squad commander in the Home Front Command’s Ari Battalion, and Sgt. Yuval Shai Svilem, 20, from Hod Hasharon, a combat soldier in the same battalion.
The two Palestinian terrorists were killed after a gun battle with IDF troops that lasted more than 20 minutes, according to an initial military investigation.
The terrorists, both 27-year-old Hebron residents, arrived by car at a temporary military checkpoint near an exit from Hebron at around 7:30 a.m.
According to the IDF’s preliminary assessment, the gunmen had intended to reach Route 35 and attack Israeli civilians but realized that they would be unable to get past the checkpoint.
The terrorists, armed with an M16 rifle and a handgun, got out of their vehicle and opened fire on the troops, using nearby buildings for cover.
Soldiers from the Ari Battalion, who were manning the checkpoint, returned fire. The battalion’s deputy commander and a company commander, along with an officer from the Paratroopers Brigade’s 101st Battalion who rushed to the scene, killed the two terrorists.
Hamas later claimed responsibility for the attack. The IDF and Shin Bet said they were investigating whether the terrorists acted independently or were part of a broader network.
Later on Friday, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said during a visit to the area that the IDF will apply a more aggressive counterterrorism model in Hebron and is prepared for a much broader operation across Judea and Samaria.
“We are going to implement the successful and aggressive model that we used in the refugee camps, which are essentially terrorist strongholds,” Netanyahu said.
“That is exactly what we will do here, inside a neighborhood in Hebron from which the terrorists came,” he continued. “We will evacuate the residents, we will go house to house, remove the weapons there, and all terrorist infrastructure will be dealt with and destroyed.”
