"Just wasting time": The goals of the operation in Hebron were achieved - but the political echelon demands it continue
A military source said the goals of the operation in Hebron were achieved, but the Prime Minister and Defense Minister demand it continue. Fighters reported wasting time. The operation was launched following the attack at the Yehuda Junction in which two soldiers fell.
A military source said today (Monday) that the goals of the operation in Hebron - creating deterrence, searching for terrorist infrastructure, and gathering intelligence - were achieved. The IDF planned to end the operation, but Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Defense Minister Israel Katz demand it continue. So far, forces have searched about 500 buildings in the Palestinian city, finding a rifle and a pistol. Fighters in one of the units participating in the operation said they are sitting in positions doing nothing, and that they are just wasting time. "You can always find another pistol and another Hamas flag, but that's not the goal," the fighters said, noting that some have not been home for 28 days. The IDF and Shin Bet launched the extensive counterterrorism operation in Hebron following the deadly attack on Friday at the Yehuda Junction, where two soldiers from the Home Front Command's Ari Battalion fell and three others were injured. The operation involves Duvdevan, Maglan, Paratroopers, reserve Givati Reconnaissance, and Border Police Judea and Samaria units, with intelligence guidance from the Shin Bet and the Judea Brigade Command. The operation focuses on the area where about 2,000 members of the Ja'aba clan, affiliated with Hamas, live, from which the two attackers came. Meanwhile, the operational investigation of the attack continues.