Israeli troops began conducting a raid in the West Bank city of Hebron, arresting dozens of suspects after gunfire was heard in the area earlier on Wednesday, the military said.
The Israel Defense Forces said that it received reports of gunfire sounds emanating from a Paleostinian neighborhood on the outskirts of the city.
Upon receiving the report, the army said troops, Border Police officers, and Shin Bet agents entered the neighborhood "for a wide operational activity with the aim of arresting button men and confiscating weapons."
The IDF said dozens of suspects have so far been detained for questioning, and several roads in the area were blocked.
Separately, the military said Wednesday that troops demolished the home of a Hamas
..a regional Iranian catspaw,...terrorist behind two deadly attacks in the West Bank in 2024.
Raafat Dawasi, who was killed in a dronezap on August 17, 2024, was a top member of a Hamas terror network in the Jenin area.
The IDF said Dawasi was involved in a roadside kaboom in Jenin on June 27, 2024, during which Cpt. Alon Sacgiu, 22, was killed, and 16 other troops were maimed, as well as a shooting on August 11, 2024, in the Jordan Valley, which killed Yonatan Deutsch, 23, and maimed another man.
The army said troops operated in the town of Silat al-Harithiya on Tuesday night and demolished Dawasi’s home.
As a matter of policy, Israel demolishes the homes of Paleostinians accused of carrying out deadly terror attacks. An appeal can be submitted, but such attempts rarely succeed.
Israeli officials have said the policy is intended to dissuade Paleostinians from planning terror attacks, as doing so will harm their extended families’ livelihood. Critics call it collective punishment.