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Israeli Forces Mass-Arrest Palestinians, Evict Families in Qabatiya
Israeli troops storm Qabatiya in the West Bank, detaining dozens and displacing families amid sweeping military operations. Human rights groups warn of collective punishment.
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by Muhammad Hashir
2025-12-27
Israeli Forces Mass-Arrest Palestinians, Evict Families in Qabatiya

Israeli forces carried out mass arrests and forcibly displaced dozens of families in the town of Qabatiya on Saturday, the second day of a sweeping military operation ordered by Israel’s Defense Minister, Israel Katz.

Local sources told Al Jazeera that Israeli troops sealed off entrances to Qabatiya, conducting arrests and interrogations across the town. Several homes were converted into temporary military interrogation centers, displacing their occupants, according to the Palestinian Wafa news agency.

Israel’s Army Radio confirmed that Qabatiya remains under a “full curfew.” The operation follows Katz’s directive to “act forcefully … against the village of Qabatiya,” citing the alleged involvement of a Palestinian resident in a stabbing and car-ramming attack in northern Israel.

The Israeli military deployed multiple divisions, border police, and Shin Bet security personnel to the town. They raided the suspect’s home and announced plans to demolish it — a practice widely criticized by rights groups as an illegal form of collective punishment.

“People in the town are living in fear,” a resident told Al Jazeera. “There are Israeli threats and Israeli incitement.”

The crackdown extended beyond Qabatiya, with raids reported in surrounding West Bank villages, including areas near Ramallah and Hebron. Eight individuals were arrested in the towns of Dura, Abda, and Imreish.

The West Bank has seen near-daily Israeli military incursions since the escalation of the conflict in Gaza in October 2023. According to Palestinian sources, nearly 21,000 Palestinians have been arrested since October, and more than 9,300 remain in Israeli jails as of December 1, over a third of them without formal charges. Reports of torture, sexual abuse, and deaths in custody have further fueled human rights concerns.

The ongoing operations in Qabatiya reflect broader tensions in the occupied territories, highlighting the humanitarian and legal concerns raised by international observers regarding Israel’s military practices.
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