Occupation prime minister threatens to expand military operations in the West Bank and destroy infrastructure

Ramallah, Oct 23 (KUNA) -- Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu threatened on Friday to expand military operations in the West Bank, evacuate residents, and destroy infrastructure in other areas, mirroring actions carried out by Israeli forces in the Jenin and Tulkarm refugee camps in the northern West Bank. Speaking during a site visit to the location of a shooting incident that occurred earlier that morning and resulted in the injury of six Israeli soldiers, Netanyahu said his forces would implement what he described as a “successful offensive model” carried out in refugee camps, involving raiding neighborhoods, evacuating residents, searching homes, and destroying infrastructure. He added, “We are ready to carry out a large-scale military operation in the West Bank.”

Israeli forces began a wide-ranging military operation in January last year in the Jenin and Tulkarm camps, dubbed “The Iron Wall,” which included house demolitions and the displacement of residents. This operation is among the most extensive military campaigns launched by the Israeli army in the West Bank since the “Defensive Wall” operation in 2002, during which it stormed cities under the control of the Palestinian Authority in accordance with the Oslo Accords.

In a related development, Netanyahu ordered on Friday morning the imposition of a military cordon around the city of Hebron and the closure of the West Bank until the scheduled legislative elections on October 27.

For his part, Israeli National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir renewed his call for the dismantling of the Palestinian Authority and for preventing Palestinians from using roads used by settlers in the West Bank.

In a related development, Israeli authorities earlier today closed the Ibrahimi Mosque in Hebron to Palestinians, dismissed its staff, and barred employees affiliated with the Palestinian Ministry of Waqf and Religious Affairs from entering the site. The ministry stated in a press release that the closure of the Ibrahimi Mosque is part of a continuing policy of Judaization and tightening measures aimed at imposing full control over the site, dividing it temporally and spatially, and undermining its Islamic administration. It affirmed that the Ibrahimi Mosque, along with all its courtyards and plazas, is an exclusively Islamic waqf, and stressed that Israeli measures and plans will not alter its Islamic and historical identity.

In the same context, the ministry warned of the repercussions of repeated violations against the Ibrahimi Mosque and attacks on religious personnel and Islamic holy sites, calling on the international community and human rights and humanitarian institutions to assume their responsibilities and intervene urgently to pressure Israeli authorities to halt their violations and attacks on Islamic holy sites. (End) N.Q. / M.N.F.