Israeli forces turn Hebron homes into military posts amid lockdown

Israeli forces have turned Palestinian homes in the city of Hebron into barracks and observation posts after forcing residents to leave, as a military operation in the southern occupied West Bank continues, the Palestinian news agency Wafa has reported.

They took over homes in the Khallat Manna and Dahiyat al-Zaytoun areas of southern Hebron to use them as barracks, and forced residents from homes in other neighbourhoods to use the properties as observation posts, Wafa said, citing sources.

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The Israeli military has imposed a lockdown in Hebron and conducted hundreds of raids since two armed Palestinian men allegedly carried out an attack on an Israeli army reserve base on Friday, killing two soldiers. The two suspects were also killed.

The evictions follow the forced displacement of hundreds of families amid extensive raids, road closures and tight restrictions on movement.

According to the Palestinian Prisoner’s Society, Israeli forces have detained at least 47 Palestinians across Hebron since Friday, while forcibly displacing 293 families, comprising about 2,200 people.

Among those displaced from Hebron are 127 infants, 81 pregnant women and 26 people with disabilities, the NGO told Al Jazeera. The displaced also include 134 Palestinians with chronic illnesses and 265 elderly people over the age of 60.

Israeli troops also conducted hundreds of field interrogations, subjecting Palestinians to detention and abuse, the group said.

New settler outposts

Meanwhile, Israeli settlers began establishing two new outposts on Palestinian-owned land in the town of Yatta, south of Hebron, Wafa reported.

Activist Osama Makhamra told Wafa that settlers began setting up an outpost in the Khallet al-Fara area, west of Yatta, where they pitched a tent, brought in bulldozers and excavation machinery, and started levelling and digging the land in preparation for construction.

He added that another outpost was established in the Yatta desert area, on Palestinian-owned land between the villages of az-Zuweidin and Umm Qussa, where settlers pitched several tents and began installing infrastructure, including water and electricity networks.

Near Bethlehem, Israeli forces continued to close roads and entrances across the governorate for the third consecutive day on Sunday, affecting several towns and villages, Wafa reported.

On Saturday, Israeli forces shut down dirt roads leading to Tuqu to block access, firing tear gas canisters and stun grenades towards Palestinian vehicles travelling along rough alternative routes near the town.

The latest attacks and closures come days before Israel’s general elections and as tensions remain high across the occupied Palestinian territory, where settlers, backed by the military, have carried out a wave of pogroms targeting olive harvesters.