West Bank closures worry UN chief, spokesperson says

The UN voiced alarm on Friday over West Bank closures that Israel imposed across the occupied territory after a shooting near Hebron.

Spokesperson Stephane Dujarric briefed reporters in New York. In his words, Secretary-General Antonio Guterres has deep concern over the broad closures. He also worries about word of house demolitions and about a risk that Hebron residents will have to leave.

“Those closures severely restrict Palestinians’ freedom of movement,” Dujarric said, and they limit access to basic services and livelihoods.

What sparked the West Bank closures

Gunmen fired on a military checkpoint outside Hebron. Accounts of the toll differ. The Israeli army reported two soldiers dead, while earlier reports counted five wounded. Israeli forces killed both Palestinian attackers.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu then ordered Hebron sealed and told security forces to prepare a full lockdown. According to the UN, he promised raids on homes and demolitions. Reports also said he threatened a broader assault of a size unseen since the Six-Day War.

The UN counted this as the fourth time within a month that Israel has restricted movement across the territory. These West Bank closures hit families, workers and farmers alike.

Criticism from the UN human rights office

Mayy El Sheikh speaks for the UN human rights office in the Occupied Palestinian Territory. She described the lockdown as one more episode in a never-ending stream of suffocating measures, and she said life grows harder for Palestinians.

In her view, the West Bank closures fit a pattern of collective punishment. After Palestinians attack settlers or soldiers, she noted, lockdowns, stepped-up raids and arbitrary detentions have followed before.

She said troops shut the entrances and exits of Hebron. They also closed the Ibrahimi Mosque, so worshippers missed Friday prayers.

Meanwhile, the timing hurts farmers. The olive harvest is at its peak, and thousands of growers already cannot reach their trees, she said. The season, she warned, will suffer devastating effects.

Settler attacks at record levels

Guterres condemned what he called record numbers of settler attacks on Palestinians in 2026. He reminded Israel that, as the occupying power, it must protect Palestinians and hold perpetrators to account.

In the first half of October alone, the human rights office documented over 160 attacks by settlers. Those incidents involved live ammunition, fires, stolen crops and damaged olive trees.

Guterres also stays concerned about civilian casualties in Gaza, children among them, and about tight limits on aid deliveries before winter.

Dujarric repeated the call for all sides to stop violence at once and show restraint. They should avoid steps that could raise tension further, he said.

Israeli military operations and settler attacks have grown across the West Bank, including East Jerusalem, since the war on Gaza began in October 2023. Reports list killings, arrests, demolitions, burned mosques and vehicles, ruined farmland and displaced communities.

For now, the West Bank closures remain in force, and the UN says civilians must come first. Hebron’s exits and its main mosque stayed shut after the attack, according to the rights office.