Israeli army claims to have 'neutralized' Palestinian for alleged stabbing attack at checkpoint in Hebron

By Zein Khalil and Ahmed Asmar

JERUSALEM/ The Israeli army reported Saturday that it "neutralized" a Palestinian who allegedly attempted to stab soldiers at a military checkpoint near Hebron in the southern occupied West Bank, with no Israeli casualties reported.

In a statement, the army claimed that its forces responded to a reported stabbing attempt at a Hebron-area checkpoint and neutralized the assailant without sustaining injuries.

The military did not specify the Palestinian's condition, though Israel routinely uses the term "neutralized" to describe suspects shot during alleged attack attempts.

The official Palestinian news agency Wafa said a 35-year-old Palestinian was critically injured by the Israeli forces at the military Tel Rumeida checkpoint in central Hebron.

Since the start of the Israeli onslaught on the Gaza Strip on Oct. 7, 2023, nearly 970 Palestinians have been killed and more than 7,000 injured in attacks by the Israeli army and illegal settlers across the occupied West Bank, according to the Palestinian Health Ministry.​​​​​​​

The International Court of Justice declared last July that Israel’s longstanding occupation of Palestinian territories is illegal, and called for the evacuation of all settlements in the West Bank and East Jerusalem.