HEBRON — Israeli forces are maintaining their siege on Hebron for the 10th consecutive day, threatening to expand their offensive and forcing more Palestinian families from their homes, Al Jazeera reported on Sunday. The lockdown in the occupied West Bank city was enforced after an attack on October 23 near Hebron in which two Israeli soldiers were killed. More than 3,300 Palestinians have since been displaced or affected, with homes destroyed and businesses shut, according to the local municipality.
Source: Al Jazeera, Nov 1
Mayor Yousef al-Jabari told Al Jazeera on Saturday that daily economic losses were estimated to exceed 12 million shekels ($3.8 million), with more than $1.9 million worth of damage to infrastructure, along with losses in the health and environmental sectors estimated at about $160,000. He said Israeli forces have demolished 15 homes and other structures and forced 327 businesses to close, and that about 80,000 students have been unable to attend school for 10 days. The mayor said Hebron accounts for about 40 percent of the Palestinian economy and called the siege 'collective punishment'. Yaani: $3.8 million a day is about 38 lakh US dollars of losses every single day the lockdown continues — and the $1.9 million infrastructure damage figure is about 19 lakh dollars on top of that.
A record month for settler attacks, UN office says
The United Nations humanitarian office, OCHA, said Israeli settlers carried out 397 attacks on Palestinians across the occupied West Bank in October, the highest monthly figure since monitoring began in 2006, the Palestinian news agency Wafa reported via Al Jazeera. OCHA's own situation report of October 29 records the same total — 397 incidents between October 1 and 26 that resulted in casualties or property damage — and says that between October 20 and 26 alone, 62 settler attacks were documented across 49 West Bank communities, including 38 olive-harvest-related attacks. The same OCHA report said humanitarian partners were supporting local authorities responding to the needs of approximately 3,000 Palestinians reportedly displaced during the ongoing operation in Hebron city.
Source: UN OCHA situation report, Oct 29
Israeli arrests of Palestinians in Hebron and other West Bank cities continued on Sunday, Al Jazeera reported. Israeli forces arrested 10 Palestinian teachers in Masafer Yatta, south of Hebron, and seized their vehicle, the Palestinian news agency Wafa reported. Video shared by Palestinian media and verified by Al Jazeera showed the Israeli military raiding a school run by the United Nations in the Shufat refugee camp in occupied East Jerusalem.
What is solid
- Al Jazeera reported on Nov 1 that the Hebron siege had entered its 10th consecutive day, following the Oct 23 attack in which two Israeli soldiers were killed
- OCHA's Oct 29 situation report records 397 settler attacks resulting in casualties or property damage between Oct 1 and 26 — the highest monthly total since documentation began in 2006
- OCHA put the number of Palestinians reportedly displaced by the Hebron operation at approximately 3,000 in the same report
What is only claimed
- The scale of Hebron's daily economic losses — the $3.8-million-a-day figure, the 327 closed businesses and the 80,000 students out of school are the Hebron mayor's estimates, given to Al Jazeera, not independently audited figures
- How many people the operation has displaced — the municipality says more than 3,300 displaced or affected; OCHA says approximately 3,000 displaced. The two counts use different wording and are reported here with their sources
- Whether the offensive will expand — Al Jazeera reported a threat to expand it; no expanded operation had been confirmed at the time of reporting
Palestinian families in and around Hebron fear the army could soon extend its attacks, Al Jazeera reported, while arrests continued across the West Bank on Sunday. The operation began on October 23; this report is a follow-up to the site's earlier coverage of its fourth and fifth days and of the home demolitions reported on October 30, and it will be updated if Israel confirms any expansion of the offensive or the municipality issues new figures.