Israel seals West Bank crossings until after Tuesday's election as Hebron operation drives thousands from their homes
Two gunmen shot dead two Israeli soldiers and wounded three at a checkpoint, the attack Benjamin Netanyahu cited as justification for sealing West Bank crossings and launching strikes across more than 400 locations in…A Hyundai excavator demolishes a building in a densely built urban area, as videos show soldiers marking homes with black crosses before bulldozers flattened entire blocks across Hebron.
The crackdown follows a gun attack that killed two Israeli soldiers and wounded three at a Hebron checkpoint on Friday. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu vowed 'to destroy this place' in retaliation. Troops raided more than 400 locations over the weekend and arrested 40 Palestinians the army links to Hamas or Islamic Jihad. Residents of Deir Bahha, the suspected gunmen's neighbourhood, were ordered to evacuate.
Hebron mayor Yousef Zuhair Al-Jabari: 'People cannot reach or enter the city.'
Over 2,200 people have been displaced in Hebron, including nearly 200 children.
Tuesday's vote is widely seen as a referendum on Netanyahu's wartime security record.
