IDF Cordons Off Hebron Following Attack; Netanyahu Orders Closure Preparations

The prime minister ordered a cordon on Hebron and preparations for a full closure of the West Bank, after security officials revealed the assailants planned an attack in central Israel.

Hebron, 2017 · Photo: Roxanne Desgagnés roxannedesgagnes · CC0 · Wikimedia Commons

Following the shooting attack at Judea Junction, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu instructed security forces to place an immediate cordon around Hebron and prepare for a comprehensive closure across the West Bank, Globes and Channel 7 reported. Netanyahu stated that Israel will pursue Hamas terrorists and those who dispatched them.

According to a report by Channel 7, security officials noted that the two assailants left Hebron equipped with extensive weapons and ammunition, planning to travel along Route 35 to carry out a large-scale attack in central Israel before being intercepted at the junction by Home Front Command troops.

President Isaac Herzog spoke with the head of the Har Hevron Regional Council, while US Ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee praised the response of security forces, stating their actions averted an even greater disaster.