Israel Orders Military to Prepare for Full Closure of West Bank

Israel ordered its military on Friday to prepare for a full closure of the West Bank, following a deadly shooting near the city of Hebron.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu vowed to intensify counterterrorism operations ahead of next week’s national election.

The order followed what the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) described as a shooting attack at Yehuda Junction, southwest of Hebron near the boundary between southern Israel and the West Bank.

The IDF said it first received reports of the attack early Friday morning and dispatched large numbers of soldiers to the area while launching a search for the attacker.

“Following the report of a shooting attack in the Judea Junction area, IDF soldiers eliminated two terrorists and continue searches in the area,” the military said in a subsequent update.

Netanyahu said he had convened a security assessment with military and security officials before issuing new directives.

“I have instructed the IDF and security forces to immediately cordon off the city of Hebron and take additional security measures to prevent terrorist attacks originating from Judea and Samaria,” Netanyahu said, referring to the area of the West Bank by the names used in Israel.

He praised Israeli security forces for preventing what he said was “a major attack aimed at murdering innocent civilians” and said the military was conducting widespread arrest operations.

“We will pursue Hamas terrorists and those who sent them, wherever they are and at all times. You have nowhere to hide,” he said.

Security Operations

Israeli security forces conducted dozens of counterterrorism operations across the West Bank during the past week, according to the IDF.

Approximately 70 wanted individuals were arrested, including people the IDF said were affiliated with Hamas and Palestinian Islamic Jihad, as well as individuals accused of incitement.

The military also said it seized dozens of weapons, including M16 rifles, Carlo submachine guns, and four explosive devices.

“The security forces will continue to conduct offensive counterterrorism operations to safeguard the security of Israeli civilians,” the IDF said.

Friday’s shooting follows a series of violent incidents in the occupied West Bank over recent days.

Jewish American freelance photojournalist Heidi Levine lies on a gurney in the emergency room of the government hospital in Ramallah, as she is treated after being attacked while photographing Palestinian farmers harvesting their olives, in the Palestinian village of Abu Falah in the West Bank on Oct. 16, 2026. Ahmas Gharabli/AFP

Israeli police on Oct. 19 arrested 10 suspects over attacks on European diplomats and freelance photojournalist Heidi Levine during a Palestinian olive harvest, according to Israeli authorities.

The incidents prompted criticism from several Western governments. The United States urged Israel to take stronger action against settler violence, while France, Belgium, and Poland also called on Israeli authorities to respond after their diplomats were attacked.

Speaking on Oct. 17, U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio said the Trump administration was “very disturbed” by images from the incidents and said President Donald Trump did not want to see “a crisis in the West Bank.”

Election Security in Focus

The incident comes less than a week before Israelis head to the polls on Oct. 27 in an election in which national security has overshadowed virtually every other campaign issue.

The vote is Israel’s first national election since the Oct. 7, 2023, Hamas terrorist attack and the subsequent wars in Gaza, Lebanon, and Iran.

Netanyahu has campaigned on his wartime leadership and pledged to maintain a hard line against Israel’s adversaries, while opposition parties have argued that the security failures preceding the Oct. 7 attack demonstrate the need for new leadership.

A road sign stands in front of a large billboard featuring Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu (R) of the Likud party and former military chief and leader of the liberal Yashar party, Gadi Eisenkot, in Ramat Gan, Tel Aviv, on Oct. 20, 2026. Jack Guez/AFP via Getty Images

Israeli National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir, who is leading the Otzma Yehudit (Jewish Power) and advocates expanding settlements, called for dismantling the Palestinian Authority following the Friday shooting.

“We need to dismantle this thing called the Palestinian Authority. There cannot be a situation where, within Judea and Samaria, we have a state of terror,” he said in an X statement.