Hebron is under siege for the ninth day and 537 families have been completely displaced from their homes

According to what was published by BBC News Arabic, the Israeli military operation in the city of Hebron in the southern West Bank continues for the ninth day in a row, amid a siege and closure that limits the movement of the population. The operation follows a shooting on October 23 that killed two Israeli soldiers and wounded three others.

The Israeli army announced that its operation aims to pursue the perpetrators of the attack, search for weapons, and arrest suspects, and said that it found dozens of weapons and explosive devices. The source stated that the forces blew up the houses of the perpetrators of the operation Hammouda and Ahmed Al-Juba in the neighborhood of Ain Deir Baha.

Hebron Mayor Youssef al-Ja 'bari told the BBC that restrictions on movement prevented residents from entering and exiting the city normally, describing the measures as “collective punishment”. He explained that more than 780 families were affected, including 537 families who had to leave their homes completely, and that more than 3,000 people were affected by displacement, while 1,500 remained trapped in their homes, especially in Al-Jalda and Deir Baha neighborhoods.

For his part, The Palestinian Prisoner's Club said forces have arrested more than 115 citizens since the campaign began, and detained hundreds more as they tried to return to their homes. According to the Ministry of Education, face-to-face education was completely disrupted in 66 schools, affecting 2,872 students.

Baher Shaheen, a resident of the Deir Boha neighborhood, recounted that forces stormed the neighborhood and asked residents to leave their homes over loudspeakers, and that his family then dispersed between the homes of relatives and friends. As for Hamza Shabana from Al-Jalda neighborhood, he said that his shop has been closed since the beginning of the operation. This caused him significant financial losses.

In the Old City, the anti-settlement activist Issa Amr pointed to the closure of the area for a week and then the intermittent reopening of some checkpoints, in addition to the escalation of settler attacks. The Hebron Chamber of Commerce estimated direct economic losses at NIS 10-12 million per day.

Source: BBC News Arabic - https://www.bbc.com/arabic/articles/c6vgjzjrnj4po?at_medium=RSS&at_campaign=rss