Palestinian gunmen shoot Israelis in West Bank
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The gist
Palestinian gunmen opened fire at Yehuda Junction near Hebron, killing two Israeli soldiers before troops killed both attackers.
The attack came four days before Israel's election, prompting a West Bank closure order.
Background
The shooting took place at Yehuda Junction, south-east of Hebron, in the occupied West Bank, where two Palestinian gunmen opened fire on Israelis. Violence in the West Bank has escalated since the Hamas-led attacks on Israel on Oct. 7, 2023, and the subsequent war in Gaza, with Israeli forces conducting sweeping raids they say target Palestinian armed groups. The attack landed four days before Israel's national elections, which have centered on Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's handling of security.
How it unfolded
- Oct 23, 2026Two Palestinian gunmen from Hebron, armed with an M16 rifle and a handgun, opened fire at an Israeli military position at Yehuda Junction; an exchange of fire lasted about 20 minutes and both gunmen were killed.
- Oct 23, 2026Two Israeli soldiers, Staff Sgt. Ron Yonatan Roytman, 23, and Sgt. Yuval Shai Svilem, 20, were killed; Magen David Adom reported five wounded, two critically, taken to Jerusalem hospitals.
- Oct 23, 2026Netanyahu held an emergency Security Cabinet meeting and ordered forces to cordon off Hebron and prepare a full West Bank closure starting Friday.
- Oct 23, 2026Israeli troops and intelligence agencies carried out dozens of operations in the West Bank, detaining dozens of people including Hamas and Islamic Jihad affiliates and seizing weapons; roadblocks were set up in Palestinian towns.
- Oct 23, 2026At the site, Netanyahu said Israel would launch a sweeping anti-terror operation in the Hebron neighborhood where the gunmen lived, going house by house.
Who’s saying what
- Official
- Military chief Lt. Gen. Eyal Zamir said troops' swift action prevented a more serious attack, and that a large quantity of ammunition found in the gunmen's vehicle was meant for a larger-scale attack.
- Official
- Netanyahu praised the soldiers for thwarting the attack and said Israel would evacuate residents, go house by house and destroy what he called terror infrastructure.
- Caution
- Far-right National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir said the attack shows Israel must restrict Palestinians' freedom of movement, arguing residents' and security forces' lives outweigh freedom of movement.
- Party
- Hamas praised the attack as a "heroic operation" without claiming responsibility, and called on armed Palestinians to shoot at "the occupiers, their soldiers and their criminal settlers."
Still unverified
Hamas praised the attack but stopped short of claiming responsibility; Netanyahu's office called the gunmen "Hamas terrorists" planning a major attack, while the army said its forces prevented the men from advancing to where civilians could have been harmed.