Israel army bars rights groups from entering West Bank's Hebron
Israel army bars rights groups from entering West Bank's Hebron
A tour of 300 people led by around 30 rights groups including B'Tselem and Breaking the Silence were barred from entering Hebron by the Israeli military on Friday.
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Israeli soldiers prevented the rights groups from entering Hebron on Friday [Hazem Bader/AFP via Getty]
The Israeli army issued an order on Friday blocking rights organisations from entering the Palestinian city of Hebron in the occupied West Bank, according to Israeli outlet Haaretz.
A tour of 300 people organised by around 30 rights groups, including B’TSelem, Breaking the Silence, Peace Now and Association for Civil Rights were prevented from entering the city despite being told days before that the tour would go ahead.
"In accordance with our assessment of the situation, it was decided to issue a military exclusion zone order in several districts of Hebron in order to prevent friction. In accordance with the order, the entry of citizens who do not live in these districts was prohibited," an army spokesperson was quoted by Haaretz as saying.
Military sources told the Israeli newspaper that the order was to prevent any 'friction' in Hebron as its soldiers continue to attack and kill Palestinians in the occupied West Bank.
Last Tuesday, an Israeli raid killed 44-year-old Mufid Khlayel in the nearby village of Beit Ummar, who was one among several Palestinians killed in the past week.
Rights groups and the tours they lead into the occupied West Bank are often harassed by Israeli soldiers and extremist settlers.
Last week, an Israeli soldier punched a participant in a tour organised by the religious Jewish group 'Bnei Avraham' who work alongside Palestinians. Another soldier was caught on video intimidating the group, saying "Leftists, I will break you" and adding that "Ben-Gvir is going to bring order" - in reference to the right-wing extremist settler who is likely to become a senior member in Israel’s new government.
Israel annexed and occupied the West Bank and East Jerusalem in 1967, and built dozens of settlements on Palestinian land in a move deemed illegal under international law.
Since March, the Israeli army has carried out near-daily deadly raids in the occupied West Bank. More than 200 Palestinians have been killed by Israeli forces so far in 2022, making it the deadliest year since 2006.
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