Israel raids towns, detains dozens of Palestinians in occupied West Bank

Israeli forces have raided towns, detaining dozens of Palestinians, hours after Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu confirmed ordering a full lockdown of the occupied West Bank after an attack in the city of Hebron that killed two Israeli soldiers.

Key points

• Israeli forces raided at least 15 towns in the northern West Bank, detaining dozens of Palestinians, Al Jazeera correspondents documented on Saturday.
• With the lockdown, almost 1, 000 checkpoints and gates throughout the West Bank will be closed, affecting millions of Palestinians.
• Mustafa Barghouti, secretary-general of the Palestinian National Initiative political party, remarked incitement from far-right Israeli ministers is making the situation worse.
• The military raids targeted a number of northern cities and towns, including Nablus, Jenin, Tubas and Qalqilya.
• In Nablus, Israeli forces carried out arrests and raided Palestinian homes in the villages of Jalud and Qaryut.

Meanwhile, the military raids targeted a number of northern cities and towns, including Nablus, Jenin, Tubas and Qalqilya.

In Nablus, Israeli forces carried out arrests and raided Palestinian homes in the villages of Jalud and Qaryut. While Israeli forces entered Tubas and the nearby town of Aqqaba, arrests were additionally noted in Arrabeh and Burqin, near Jenin.

In the southern occupied West Bank, Israeli bulldozers demolished a three-storey building in Hebron, with families given five minutes to collect their belongings. Israeli forces additionally ordered hundreds of Palestinian families to forcibly evacuate their homes in the Ein Deir Bahha area of Hebron and its surroundings.

While carrying out raids in the city's al-Jalda neighbourhood, israeli troops additionally surrounded the home of one of the suspects in the shooting attack that killed two Israeli soldiers in Hebron.

Notably, the Israeli army remarked late on Friday that its forces began an operation in Hebron that would last "for several days", along with operations by other forces in "dozens" of areas throughout the West Bank.

Further east, Israeli forces entered Jericho and the nearby Aqabat Jabr refugee camp.

Netanyahu offered the order on Friday, shortly after the Israeli military stated it had killed two Palestinian gunmen who attacked a reserve battalion near the Israeli settlement of Telem, killing two soldiers.

Israel's ambulance service documented that at least three Israeli soldiers were injured along with the two who died. All Israeli settlements, including Telem, are illegal under international law.

For context, the attack and clampdown came against the backdrop of heightened tensions throughout the Palestinian territory as Israeli settlers and soldiers engage in violent pogroms. Attacks on olive harvesters have been rife as aggression has been on the rise before the coming Israeli elections on Tuesday.

Far-right National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir responded to the killing of the Israeli soldiers by calling for Israel to take full control of the West Bank, in which the Israeli administration is encouraging the construction of numerous settlements.

Notably, the closure turns every city and village into "a small prison", with checkpoints and gates blocking healthcare, the economy and education, he informed Al Jazeera. He cautioned that collective punishment "will lead to explosions".

For now, israel raids towns, detains dozens of Palestinians in occupied West Bank remains the part of the story worth watching, and further updates are likely as more details are confirmed.