Israeli army declares Hebron neighborhood closed military zone amid raids

The Israeli army declared the Ain Deir Baha neighborhood in Hebron, in the southern occupied West Bank, a closed military zone late Friday as troops carried out raids and detained several young Palestinians, Anadolu reports.

The move came as an Israeli military offensive in Hebron entered its eighth day, displacing thousands of civilians, detaining dozens and demolishing Palestinian homes and structures.

Witnesses told Anadolu that Israeli military vehicles entered the neighborhood and announced over loudspeakers that the area had been designated a closed military zone, prohibiting residents from entering or moving within it.

Videos circulated by local media outlets showed Israeli troops deployed in the neighborhood, warning residents that remaining in the area had become dangerous.

Other footage shared on social media, including by the Quds News Network, showed Israeli soldiers detaining a group of Palestinians.

The detainees were forced to place their hands on their heads before being escorted under heavy guard to an unknown location.

The Israeli army launched its offensive in Hebron on Oct. 23 following a shooting attack by two Palestinians that killed two Israeli soldiers and injured three others. The army later killed the two attackers.

READ: More than 2,600 Palestinians displaced as Israeli army continues large-scale offensive in Hebron

Israeli forces have since imposed a military closure on Hebron and surrounding villages, seizing Palestinian homes in the Jalda and Ain Deir Baha neighborhoods and converting them into military barracks.

The Hebron Municipality said Tuesday that 4,969 Palestinians from 780 families had been displaced by the operation.

During the first days of the offensive, Israeli forces carried out forced displacement operations, demolished homes, commercial establishments and other structures, and destroyed infrastructure.

Troops also converted Palestinian homes into military barracks and raised Israeli flags above them.

The Palestinian Prisoners Club said Israeli forces detained 110 Palestinians in the Hebron governorate between Friday and Wednesday.

The military siege and closures have also disrupted education at 66 schools, affecting 2,872 students.

Of those, 2,198 students remain under direct siege, while another 674 have been forcibly displaced and are unable to reach their schools.

Displaced Palestinians have demanded an end to the military closure and the lifting of restrictions on their residential areas to allow them to return home and resume their lives.

READ: Palestinians forcibly displaced by Israeli army rally in Hebron, demand return home