Israel just sealed off an entire Palestinian city and shows no sign of lifting it

Israel just sealed off an entire city.

Every entrance into Hebron is shut. Nobody gets in. Nobody gets out.

And around 2,200 people have already been forced out of their homes.

So how did we get here?

Two days ago, two Palestinian gunmen opened fire at a checkpoint near Hebron. Mohammad Jaaba and Firas Jaaba, both 27, both from the same family in the city.

The gun battle went on for about 20 minutes. Two Israeli soldiers were killed — Staff Sergeant Ron Yonatan Roytman, 23, and Sergeant Yuval Shai Svilem, 20. Three more were wounded. Israeli troops killed both gunmen.

Benjamin Netanyahu, Israel's Prime Minister, ordered a full lockdown of the West Bank that same day.

Israeli forces then raided at least 15 areas. Jenin, Nablus, Ramallah, Al-Bireh, Birzeit, East Jerusalem, Bethlehem.

But Hebron is where this has gone furthest.

Israeli troops evicted around 2,200 people from the Deir Bahala and al-Jalda neighbourhoods, and the streets around them. Elderly residents. Women. Children.

According to Middle East Eye, that area covers roughly 330 dunams. More than 490 housing units.

Hebron's mayor, Yousef al-Ja'bari, says the city is now a disaster zone. He says no one can enter or leave.

Israel Katz, Israel's Defence Minister, has confirmed the displacement. He puts the number at about 2,000.

He told Israeli broadcaster Kan something worth sitting with. He says people will not be allowed back into their neighbourhood until, in his words, Israel has finished dealing with all the Hamas issues in Hebron.

That's an open-ended condition. No date. No definition of what finishing the job even means.

Now zoom out. Around 200,000 Palestinians live in Hebron city itself. Another 600,000 live across Hebron governorate, according to Hebron-based analyst Issa Amro.

That's roughly 800,000 people under siege. Every entrance and exit closed since this morning.