Israel's Netanyahu vows major military operation, cordons off West Bank city after deadly attack on troops

Tel Aviv — Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Friday that he had ordered a major military operation in the occupied West Bank and told troops to cordon off a large city in the territory after a shooting attack by two Palestinian men that killed two soldiers.

The Israeli military said forces killed the Palestinian gunmen after they opened fire at a junction near the West Bank city of Hebron. The military later confirmed that two soldiers, Staff Sergeant Ron Yonatan Roytman and Sergeant Yuval Shai Svilem, were killed in the attack, while three others were lightly injured.  

Netanyahu said he had ordered the evacuation of residents from the neighborhood in Hebron where the gunmen lived ahead of a house-to-house sweep for weapons. 

"Our first step will be to demolish this site and completely transform it," Netanyahu said. 

He added that he ordered the IDF to cordon off Hebron, a city with more than 200,000 inhabitants. Netanyahu said a broader military operation would follow. 

"The IDF will enter the neighborhoods from which the terrorists emerged, evacuate the residents, go house-to-house, and dismantle the terror infrastructure. We are prepared for an extensive operation in Judea and Samaria," he said, using Israel's name for the West Bank.

Israel's military said a large amount of weapons and ammunition was discovered in the attackers' vehicle, alleging that they were planning a major attack on civilians. The shooters used an M16 rifle and a handgun in their attack, the IDF said.

The escalation in the West Bank comes just before Israel holds elections on Tuesday, in which Netanyahu has made national security a central issue of his campaign for another term.

Netanyahu said the Palestinian shooting attack was an attempt to influence Israel elections, and referenced a warning he made a few weeks ago about Israel's enemies preparing attacks to affect the vote.

Netanayhu called the gunmen involved in the shooting near Hebron "Hamas terrorists." 

Hamas called the attack heroic and a legitimate response to "ongoing crimes and brutal attacks against our people, land, and holy sites," but the group stopped short of claiming responsibility.  

Hamas, long designated a terrorist group by Israel and the U.S., called for any Palestinians in the West Bank with guns to use them to attack Israeli soldiers and civilians living in the occupied territory.

Following the shooting, the IDF said it had launched "offensive counterterrorism operations" in the Hebron area, and that soldiers were operating inside the residences of the shooters in Friday's attack and other suspects.

The IDF said it had arrested around 70 wanted Palestinians during operations in the West Bank over the past week. 

Netanyahu's Likud party said the prime minister had convened his top security chiefs Friday, and that the party was canceling all campaign events for the rest of the day. 

The attack follows a recent surge in Israeli settler attacks on Palestinians. It also comes after Brad Lander, a New York Democratic candidate for Congress, was briefly detained by Israeli forces this week while helping Palestinian farmers during the annual olive harvest.