Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu held a situational assessment in the West Bank on Monday, following recent outbreaks of violence in the area at several flashpoints, including Kusra and Gilad Farm near Nablus, as well as Yatta and Sa'ir near Hebron.
Chief of Staff Eyal Zamir warned Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in recent discussions that, given the situation on the ground, “there is a risk of an explosion in the West Bank,” according to two Israeli sources.
Defense Minister Israel Katz, IDF Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Eyal Zamir, National Security Council head Shmuel Ben Ezra, Central Command head Maj.-Gen. Avi Bluth, Military Intelligence Chief, Maj.-Gen. Shlomi Binder, IDF Operations Division head, Brig.-Gen. A, Judea and Samaria Division commander, Brig.-Gen. Kobi Heller, and other senior officials attended.
The meeting covered a general assessment of security threats in the region, with a particular focus on terror, as well as the "dramatic increase" in Israeli settlement in the West Bank, Katz said afterward. He also praised the IDF soldiers and other service members who enforce Israel's policies in Judea and Samaria, "including the order we gave to evacuate refugee camps in northern Samaria and destroy terror infrastructure there."
During the briefing, Bluth warned that “there has been a significant decline in the scope of terrorism over the past two years, but there is a match that could set everything on fire in an instant — and that is nationalist crime.”
Bluth’s comments referred to the significant decline in the number of Israelis killed and wounded in Palestinian terror attacks, alongside a substantial increase in incidents of violence by Israelis against Palestinians. However, Central Command has been able to bring about a partial decline in such violent incidents since their peak in March, coinciding with the US-Israeli military campaign against Iran.
The IDF chief also warned during the briefing about the volatility of the situation on the ground, two Israeli sources told The Jerusalem Post.
On Monday evening, members of the Security Cabinet convened for a meeting against the backdrop of recent events in Syria, including the bombing of a Syrian Air Force base shortly before Turkish troops and air-defense systems were deployed there. The ministers were also expected to discuss the situation in the West Bank and hear warnings from the IDF chief and other senior military officials about the volatility on the ground.
Paratroopers to join Israeli security forces in West Bank following three-month Gaza tour
Also on Monday, the IDF announced that members of the Paratroopers Brigade would be transferring to the West Bank following the completion of their previous posting in the Gaza Strip.
Stationed in Gaza since June under the command of the 143rd Gaza Division and the 99th Division, the troops dismantled a total of 13 km of underground tunnels, including part of the tunnel where Lt. Hadar Goldin was held for over a decade.