The IDF reported Friday that Israeli civilians who entered the outskirts of Nablus vandalized a cemetery and drew rock-throwing from Palestinians. IDF soldiers, deployed ahead of the group, extracted the civilians. Later, rocks were hurled at the troops, and soldiers responded by firing toward a primary instigator under suspect apprehension protocol. The IDF said it remains deployed in the sector to prevent further friction and reiterated that entry into Area A is prohibited and dangerous.
The IDF provided an update Friday morning on the security incident in Nablus, detailing the extraction of Israeli civilians who entered the city's outskirts and the subsequent response to rock-throwing at soldiers.
**The incident so far:** As The Zioneer reported at 11:06 and 11:12, a group of Israeli civilians entered the outskirts of Nablus in the Shomron Brigade area earlier today. Palestinians threw stones at the group, and one Israeli fired warning shots into the air. A report was also received of several Israelis vandalizing a cemetery. IDF soldiers, who had been deployed in the area ahead of the civilians' arrival, dispersed the gathering and evacuated the civilians. All civilians have since left the Nablus area.
**Troops fired at instigator:** Later, rocks were hurled at the IDF soldiers operating in the area. The soldiers responded by initiating the suspect apprehension protocol, which included firing toward a primary instigator. No casualties were reported from either the rock-throwing or the shootings.
**Continued deployment:** The IDF said soldiers remain deployed across the sector to prevent additional confrontational incidents. The military emphasized that entry into Area A is prohibited and dangerous for Israeli citizens and constitutes a violation of the law.
This is the latest in a series of incidents where Israeli civilians have entered Palestinian Authority-controlled cities in Judea and Samaria without authorization. A similar event occurred in Qalqilya on July 7, when the IDF rescued a group of civilians and administratively seized a reservist's weapon.
3 developments
- DevelopingIDF: Israelis entered Nablus outskirts, threw stones, fired into air; cemetery vandalized
- StrongIDF rescues Israeli civilians from Qalqilya, criticizes unauthorized entry into Area A
- DevelopingIDF operates in Nablus area, Arab media reports show
- StrongArab reports: IDF forces enter villages east of Nablus
Source and signal
- Open-source intake