Searches and closures around Hebron
The Israeli army identified the soldiers killed near Yehuda Junction outside Hebron on Oct. 23 as Staff Sgt. Ron Yonatan Roytman, 23, and Sgt. Yuval Shai Svilem, 20. Three other soldiers suffered minor injuries in the morning attack.
According to the military, the soldiers intercepted what it described as a planned terrorist attack on Israeli civilians. It said its forces killed both suspected gunmen, who were reportedly carrying an M16 rifle and a handgun.
By late Friday, the military had announced extensive searches and targeted operations in the area where the suspects had operated. It expected those operations to last several days. Residents seeking to leave the affected area would have to pass through one of three designated checkpoints and undergo questioning and security screening.
Israeli forces also started demolishing structures and infrastructure they deemed security threats as operations continued elsewhere in the West Bank. The prime minister's office said the military had received instructions to prepare for a complete closure of the territory.
The United Nations said Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu had ordered Hebron sealed and promised house-to-house raids and home demolitions. According to the UN, he also reportedly threatened a broader assault on a scale not seen since the Six-Day War.
The UN human rights office reported that Hebron's entrances and exits had been closed and that worshippers could not attend Friday prayers because the Ibrahimi Mosque was shut. The closure coincided with the peak of the olive harvest; existing Israeli movement restrictions were already keeping thousands of Palestinian farmers from reaching their olives.
The UN said it was "extremely alarmed" by the escalating West Bank violence. Secretary-General António Guterres expressed deep concern about the closures, reports of homes being demolished and possible displacement in Hebron. The UN described the lockdown as the fourth instance of Israel imposing territory-wide restrictions in a month.
UN News also reported that the UN human rights office had recorded more than 160 settler attacks on Palestinians during the first two weeks of October. The incidents included the use of live ammunition, arson, stolen crops and damage to olive groves.
Court petition over armed election observers
Tuesday's election will determine whether Netanyahu remains in office. It is Israel's first national vote since the Hamas attack of October 7, 2023.
Ahead of the vote, Arab political parties asked Israel's Supreme Court to prohibit partisan election observers from bringing firearms into polling stations. Filed Thursday with assistance from the Israeli legal rights organization Adalah, the petition argued that the ban was needed to protect voters and the integrity of the election.
The parties brought the challenge after Jewish parties led by Netanyahu and Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich announced plans to send about 2,000 observers to Arab neighborhoods. Those parties cited allegations of election fraud.
Arab citizens represent about 20 percent of Israel's population. Arab-led parties could have a significant role in negotiations over a governing coalition, depending on Jewish parties' willingness to work with them.
Seven killed at a Jordanian church
Authorities in Jordan said gunmen attacked a funeral service at a Greek Orthodox church in Karak on Friday, killing seven people and wounding 40. Health Minister Ibrahim al-Budour said two of the wounded remained in critical condition.
Karak, about 180 kilometers (110 miles) south of the capital, Amman, has a small Christian community. Video aired by Jordanian state television appeared to show two men with pistols firing as they approached the church. A third person, apparently carrying a semiautomatic rifle, joined them in shooting before the three advanced toward the building.
The government said its investigation was moving rapidly but did not announce any arrests or say whether any attackers had been killed. It did not publicly identify the assailants, and no group immediately claimed responsibility.
Interior Minister Mazen Al-Faraya attributed the shooting to a group of "extremists." According to Jordanian outlet Roya News, he said authorities knew the suspects' names but would not release them at that time.
King Abdullah II said the attack "will be met with the harshest retaliation" and that Jordan "will strike with an iron fist" against those threatening the nation. Lebanese President Joseph Aoun denounced the "heinous terrorist attack." Mike Waltz, the U.S. ambassador to the UN, called the news "devastating" and said attacks on Christians worldwide "must be stopped."
The city was also the site of a deadly attack in 2016, when violence involving Islamic State militants at Karak Castle killed 14 people, including a Canadian visitor. The castle is a popular tourist attraction.
U.S. reduces staffing at four embassies
The United States is cutting personnel at its embassies in Jordan, Lebanon, Qatar and the United Arab Emirates amid intelligence warnings of increased Iranian efforts to target American officials and other personnel.
Director of National Intelligence Jay Clayton outlined those concerns in a memorandum sent Friday to Secretary of State Marco Rubio. Clayton said intelligence agencies had detected a significant rise in Iranian targeting efforts in the Middle East and beyond. He warned that alleged plots to kill Americans were at advanced stages in the region and in some other countries.
The Associated Press obtained the memorandum, which was also covered by Axios. Three U.S. officials confirmed that it had been sent to Rubio, who also serves as national security adviser. They spoke anonymously because the matter was sensitive.
The memo followed the State Department's announcement of the planned embassy staffing cuts. Officials linked the adjustments to concerns involving Iran and Yemen's Iranian-backed Houthi movement.
Three reported killed in Gaza strikes
Local health authorities reported that Israeli strikes killed one person in southern Gaza and two in Gaza City on Friday. The Israeli military described the target of the southern strike as a Hamas militant but did not immediately address the Gaza City strike.
The bodies of those killed in Gaza City were taken to Shifa Hospital, where relatives gathered in the courtyard.
Gaza's Health Ministry said Israeli military operations had killed more than 1,500 Palestinians since the Israel-Hamas ceasefire took effect in October 2025. It said women and children made up nearly half of those killed.
UN agencies and independent experts generally consider the ministry's detailed casualty records reliable. The ministry operates under the Hamas-led administration, and its totals do not separate civilians from combatants.
