CONFLICT WATCH — West Bank · Displacement, movement and civilian protection

Israeli forces closed vehicle access across Hebron in the occupied West Bank on Saturday as residents left homes in neighbourhoods where troops were conducting searches.

The Associated Press reported that all gates leading into and out of the city were closed to vehicles, leaving Palestinians to cross on foot. AP journalists saw taxis waiting behind military-controlled gates and an Israeli flag draped over a home that had been taken for military use.

Municipality reports hundreds of families leaving

Up to 300 families had left Deir Baha and two adjacent neighbourhoods by Saturday morning, according to a tally from Hebron's municipality reported by AP.

The Israeli military did not respond to AP's questions about the scale of the operation or the evacuations. On Friday, the military said it had begun targeted searches in the Hebron area after Palestinian gunmen killed two Israeli soldiers and wounded others. Israeli forces killed the two gunmen.

The Times of Israel reported that the military described the operation as focused on the area from which the attackers operated and expected it to last several days. The outlet said residents in the operating area were being directed to leave through three designated points after questioning and security checks.

Demolitions and a citywide closure

WAFA, the Palestinian Authority's official news agency, reported Friday evening that Israeli forces demolished commercial structures and levelled land in the Farsh al-Hawa area of western Hebron. The agency attributed those details to local sources and said the wider governorate was under a comprehensive closure.

Those demolition details and later Palestinian displacement estimates are claims from local officials and media, not findings independently established by TNC. The AP municipality tally counts families, while some later reports count individuals; the figures should not be added together.

Movement restrictions predate this operation

Hebron already had one of the West Bank's densest systems of movement controls before Saturday's closures. In an April 2026 access review, the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs counted 34 of the West Bank's 89 checkpoints and 101 of its 925 movement obstacles in Hebron's H2 area.

OCHA said the part of H2 under strict movement regulations was home to about 7,000 Palestinians and several hundred Israeli settlers. Those April figures are background on existing restrictions, not a count of people displaced in the October 24 operation.

West Bank and Gaza remain separate reporting contexts

This report concerns inland Hebron, movement restrictions and displacement in the occupied West Bank. It does not describe Gaza, and its figures should not be combined with Gaza casualty, aid or displacement data.

Related: Violence, theft and access restrictions during the West Bank olive harvest →

How this report was verified

TNC reviewed AP's October 24 eyewitness reporting and municipal tally, WAFA's October 23 local report, the Israeli military response carried by AP and The Times of Israel, and OCHA's dated access analysis. The operation was continuing when this article was prepared, so totals and access conditions may change.

TNC conducted no original interviews or field visit. Allegations, official explanations and local counts remain attributed to their published sources.

Sources and reporting dates

Cover: Editorial illustration of inland Hebron, blocked vehicle access and families walking with belongings. It is not a documentary photograph, a depiction of a specific family or home, or evidence of a particular incident.