West Bank: In Hebron, behind Israeli army barricades, a bitter sense of 'collective punishment'

LAURENCE GEAI/MYOP FOR « LE MONDE » World World World Middle East Middle East Middle East West Bank: In Hebron, behind Israeli army barricades, a bitter sense of 'collective punishment' By Manon Chapelain Published today at 2:16 am (Paris) 4 min read Lire en français Subscribers only Make us preferred on Google share Share on Messenger Share on Facebook Share by email Share on Linkedin Copy link Feature After an attack that killed two Israeli soldiers on October 23, the Israeli army sealed off several neighborhoods in the occupied West Bank city and forcibly displaced more than 2,000 Palestinians.

A respected figure in Hebron staggered and then collapsed on Sunday, October 25, under blows from frenzied Israeli soldiers. Hijazi Shawar al-Tamimi, a prominent resident of the largest city in the West Bank, had tried to return to his home in the al-Jilda neighborhood, which had been locked down by Israeli forces for two days. The septuagenarian had left his shop just after lunch, leaning on his cane, ready to confront the soldiers. "I'll dig a tunnel to get back to my house if I have to!" he said as he crossed a makeshift barricade set up by the army – a few wooden pallets placed across the road.

Two hours later, he was found gasping for breath in his hospital bed, his ankle wrapped in a thick bandage, an IV dripping into his arm. Expelled from his home during the night from Friday to Saturday in a major military operation launched after the deaths of two Israeli soldiers in an armed attack near Hebron on Friday, October 23, al-Tamimi, who suffers from chronic illnesses, had wanted to retrieve his medication. Footage from surveillance cameras showed him alone, facing a handful of soldiers.

One of them pushed him back, ordered him to leave, and then, according to al-Tamimi's account, "kicked me in the legs, chest, shoulders, and head." "I walked slowly until I reached a residential area," he recalled. "Then I fainted. I don't know how I ended up in the hospital." His chest rose noisily. He struggled to breathe and spoke haltingly, still in shock. Hijazi Shawar al-Tamimi, injured by the Israeli army when he returned home to collect his medication, here at Hebron's government hospital in the occupied West Bank, October 25, 2026.

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