Israel is preparing a major military operation in the West Bank, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Friday, as local sources reported that Israeli forces had demolished a residential building in Hebron and closed the city's main entrances following a shooting attack that killed two Israeli soldiers and two Palestinian attackers.
The Israel Defense Forces said it had launched raids in Hebron and nearby villages following the attack, in which three other Israeli soldiers were slightly wounded.
The military said it was investigating, together with the Shin Bet domestic security agency, whether the attackers belonged to an isolated cell or were linked to a larger militant cell.
Speaking in Hebron, Netanyahu said the military would apply the operational model it had used in refugee camps to neighborhoods from which the attackers had emerged.
Netanyahu said that under the plan, residents would be evacuated, troops would conduct house-to-house searches, weapons would be seized and what he called "terrorist infrastructure" would be destroyed.
Netanyahu added that he and the defense minister had reviewed plans for a large-scale military operation in the West Bank, describing it as an operation unlike any carried out since the 1967 Middle East war. He said the military was ready to carry it out, but that the timing had yet to be decided.
In response, the Palestinian Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Expatriates condemned Israel's tightening of restrictions in Hebron, warning that the measures could lead to further violence and collective punishment.
Palestinian sources said Israeli forces demolished a building containing three apartments in the Farsh al-Hawa area west of Hebron, each covering about 200 square meters. Israel also tightened restrictions at entrances and exits to cities across the West Bank and closed many checkpoints and iron gates in the southern, central and northern areas, according to Palestinian security sources.
Local sources said Israeli forces closed Hebron and its main entrances. Roads linking the city to nearby areas were also closed.
Hebron is a major economic center in the West Bank. The closure of its entrances has disrupted daily life in the area, which is home to more than one million Palestinians, according to Israeli reports.
(With input from Xinhua)