Israeli armoured vehicles launch first raid into Hebron since 2002

Israeli occupation forces stormed the southern areas of Hebron yesterday using military armoured personnel carriers, marking the first such incursion since the West Bank was invaded in 2002.

Activists documented the movement of Israeli armoured personnel carriers on paved roads and through Palestinian markets and residential areas in Hebron, a scene not witnessed since the West Bank invasion over 22 years ago.

Palestinian activist Issa Amro, who monitors Israeli violations, stated that Israeli military vehicles were seen in Area H2 of Hebron, which is under Israeli control.

Under the 1997 Hebron Agreement between the Palestine Liberation Organisation (PLO) and Israel, the city was divided into two areas: H1, under Palestinian control, and H2, under Israeli control. The latter constitutes around 20 per cent of the city’s area and includes the Old City and the Ibrahimi Mosque.

Amro suggested that the movement of these carriers might be part of an Israeli army drill in the West Bank, as they were transferred from one location to another within Hebron.

However, he warned that bringing heavy military vehicles into Hebron confirms that Israeli occupation exercises are taking place inside cities. This poses a danger to civilians and signals an official shift towards militarising the West Bank and exerting control over Area A of the territory, which is under Palestinian Authority  (PA) jurisdiction.

Read: 35,000 Palestinians displaced by Israel’s assaults on West Bank