Clashes have erupted between Palestinians and IDF forces in Hebron near a checkpoint between the Palestinian and Israeli sections of the city, Palestinian media reported on Sunday evening.
The checkpoint is known by Israelis as Machsom Hashoter (the policeman’s checkpoint) and by Palestinians as Bab al-Zawiya.
#فيديو دعوات لإعمار المسجد الإبراهيمي بالمصلين في ظل أطماع الاحتلال وردا على اقتحامه من قبل رئيس كيان الاحتلال pic.twitter.com/e0CE0RLXPl
— وكالة شهاب للأنباء (@ShehabAgency) November 28, 2021
Violence between Palestinians and IDF forces in Hebron comes after President Isaac Herzog lit the first Hanukkah candle at the Cave of the Patriarchs in the West Bank city.
On Saturday, Hamas warned of an escalation in violence if Herzog follows through with his plan to light the Hanukkah candle in Hebron, calling it a provocation” and an “attack,” and said that any violence that ensues would be Israel’s fault.
Left-wing Israeli groups have said they oppose the president’s move. Activists from left-wing NGO Peace Now, accompanied by Meretz MK Mossi Raz, protested Herzog's Hebron visit and were met with force from IDF and Israel Police forces.
The Cave of the Patriarchs, which is also holy to both Jews and Muslims, hosts both Jewish prayer sanctuaries and the Ibrahimi Mosque.
MK Ayman Odeh (Joint List) tweeted about the president's visit, writing, "Herzog did not go to light the first candle, he went to light Hebron," adding that "Whoever celebrates with fans of the killer Goldstein cannot be the president of all the citizens of the country," a reference to the Jewish extremist Baruch Goldstein, who murdered 29 Muslim worshippers at the Cave of the Patriarchs in 1994.
הרצוג לא הלך להדליק נר ראשון, הוא הלך להבעיר את חברון. מי שחוגג עם מעריצי הרוצח גולדשטיין לא יכול להיות הנשיא של כל אזרחי המדינה.
— Ayman Odeh (@AyOdeh) November 28, 2021