Two Israeli Defense Forces soldiers were killed and three other people were wounded Friday in a shooting in the southern West Bank. The two suspected attackers were also killed, officials said.
The Israel Defense Forces identified the dead as Staff Sgt. Ron Yonatan Roytman, 23, of Ashkelon, a squad commander with the Ari Battalion (775) of the Search and Rescue Brigade, and Sgt. Yuval Shai Svilem, 20, of Hod Hasharon, a combat soldier in the same battalion.
The IDF said its forces responded to a shooting near the Judea Junction on Friday and killed two people it described as “terrorists.”
Several hours later, Israel instructed its military to prepare for a full closure of the West Bank, according to The Associated Press.
Staff Sergeant Ron Yonatan Roytman, 23, and Sergeant Yuval Shai Svilem, 20, were killed during an attack in the West Bank on Friday, Oct. 23, 2026. (Israeli Defense Forces)
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu convened an emergency meeting of the Security Cabinet and accused Hamas of “planning a major attack aimed at murdering innocent civilians.”
Netanyahu said Israel would soon launch a large-scale military operation in the West Bank.
Israeli forces stand guard near a shooting scene in Hebron in the Israeli-occupied West Bank on Friday, Oct. 23, 2026. (REUTERS/Ammar Awad)
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“Our brave soldiers thwarted this attack with courage and determination,” Netanyahu said.
Israeli authorities responded to a shooting in the southern West Bank on Friday that left five people wounded and two suspected attackers dead. (REUTERS/Ammar Awad)
The suspected gunmen’s names were not immediately made public. The Israeli military said they were Palestinians from Hebron and were carrying an M16 rifle and a handgun.
Israeli security forces investigated the scene of a shooting near Judea Junction in the West Bank that left five Israelis injured. (REUTERS/Ammar Awad)
Israeli intelligence and security forces carried out dozens of raids across the West Bank on Friday, detaining dozens of people. Israeli officials said some of those arrested were members of Hamas or affiliated with Islamic Jihad.
Eyal Zamir, the Israeli army’s chief of staff, said forces discovered a “large quantity of ammunition” inside a vehicle used by the alleged attackers.
“This ammunition was intended to be used in a larger-scale attack,” Zamir said.