Israel imposes closures across a West Bank city after attacks, and other Mideast news

Israel imposed widespread closures and displaced residents in the West Bank city of Hebron on Saturday following attacks by Palestinian gunmen that Israel said killed two of its soldiers.

Meanwhile, an airstrike killed four people in Yemen, and a senior Iranian military commander said the country would not allow U.S. warships to enter the Persian Gulf. The comments come as attacks have increased in the Strait of Hormuz as tensions rise over concerns about a return to all-out war.

Here is the latest news from the Middle East on Saturday. Read our full coverage here.

Israel imposes closures across Hebron

On Saturday, Israel imposed widespread closures and displaced people across the city of Hebron following attacks by Palestinian gunmen the day prior that Israel said killed two of its soldiers.

Taxis piled up behind gates controlled by Israel’s military outside Hebron waiting for Palestinians forced to cross on foot. All gates leading in and out of the city were impassable by car, according to Basma Radio, a crowdsourced Telegram channel Palestinians use to monitor checkpoints and road closures.

Palestinian news outlet WAFA said Saturday that Israeli troops forced dozens of residents to evacuate their homes in some neighborhoods of Hebron and closed all entrances and roads leading into the city.

Israel’s army didn’t respond to questions about Saturday’s evacuations. On Friday, it said that in response to the killing of two soldiers and wounding of others, its forces had begun “conducting precise, targeted and thorough searches” in the area of Hebron from which the two gunmen had operated.

Such closures in the West Bank have grown increasingly common, particularly around Hebron. They have disrupted Palestinians’ ability to travel to work, attend school and move between villages.

On Saturday morning, Reem Al Jiyawi waited behind a closed gate trying to take her 11-year-old daughter to a cancer-related doctor’s appointment at a hospital in Dura. Unable to drive directly from her village west of Hebron, her daughter was dropped off at the gate so she could cross on foot and take a shared taxi on the other side.

Airstrike kills four people in Yemen, including women and children

An airstrike in Yemen killed four people from the same family, including women and children, said the Iranian-backed Houthi health authorities on Saturday.

The strike late Friday night hit a house in the town of Hiba near the city of Taiz, a hotbed of violence in the country’s revived civil war.

Anees al-Asbahi, the health ministry’s spokesperson, said in a statement that the strike also wounded five others, including some that were seriously hurt. A separate strike early Saturday hit a shelter for African migrants in the northern city of Saada, injuring seven people, he said.

Al-Asbahi blamed Saudi Arabia for both strikes, which came amid a major escalation of fighting between the kingdom and the Iranian-backed rebels.

Saudi Arabia did not respond to a request for comment.

The Saudi-led coalition fighting against the Houthis said it intercepted and destroyed a ballistic missile fired by the Houthis early Saturday toward the Saudi capital of Riyadh. It also said it destroyed a drone over the country’s eastern region.

Iran says it will not allow US warships to enter Persian Gulf

A senior Iranian military commander said Saturday that Iran will not allow U.S. warships to enter the Persian Gulf, according to IRNA state-run media.

Gen. Ali Abdollahi, chief of staff for Iran’s armed forces and commander of its joint military command, said U.S. naval forces were no longer able to approach waters around the Persian Gulf or Iran’s territorial waters.

He also warned U.S. President Donald Trump that U.S. forces would never return to the waterway and criticized Trump’s claims that U.S. strikes had destroyed Iran’s nuclear facilities.

Abdollahi warned that Iran would continue confronting the U.S. and Israel, saying a prolonged confrontation would further weaken them.

The comments come as attacks have increased in the Strait of Hormuz, increasing concerns about a return to all-out war. Earlier this week, seven oil tankers caught fire or were damaged after being hit by Iran or striking naval mines.

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This report will be updated throughout the day as new developments emerge.