The UN said on Friday 23 October that it is extremely alarmed by intensifying violence in the occupied West Bank, after an attack near a checkpoint outside Hebron that day was followed by widespread Israeli closures. The UN human rights office (OHCHR) described the measures as a pattern of collective punishment.
What the UN said
At the UN noon briefing on 23 October, the Spokesman for the Secretary-General said: "we are extremely alarmed by the intensifying violence that we're seeing in the occupied West Bank." He said the Secretary-General is deeply concerned by the widespread closures imposed by Israel on the Palestinian community in the West Bank after that day's attack, and added: "Those closures severely restrict Palestinians' freedom of movement, access to basic services and livelihoods."
He said the Secretary-General is also concerned by reports of home demolitions and possible displacement of Palestinian residents in Hebron, and called on all parties to cease violence and exercise restraint. He also said: "The Secretary-General condemns the violence caused by record numbers of attacks by Israeli settlers against Palestinians in 2026." Asked about the closure of the Ibrahimi Mosque, he said it falls under the UN's concern about closures restricting access to livelihoods, including places of worship.
What UN News reported
UN News reported on 23 October that, according to news reports, two Israeli soldiers were killed and at least five injured when gunmen opened fire near a military checkpoint outside Hebron, and that the two attackers were also killed. It reported that Israel's Prime Minister ordered Hebron sealed and pledged house-to-house raids and home demolitions, and that this was the fourth time in a month Israel had imposed restrictions across the territory.
UN News quoted Mayy El Sheikh, the OHCHR spokesperson for the Occupied Palestinian Territory, as saying the city's entrances and exits had been closed and the Ibrahimi Mosque shut, leaving worshippers unable to perform Friday prayers. She described the closures as "yet another episode in a never-ending stream of suffocating measures making life more and more unbearable for Palestinians" and said: "It follows a pattern of collective punishment whenever Palestinians commit acts of violence against Israeli settlers or soldiers."
OHCHR documented more than 160 settler attacks in the first two weeks of October, according to UN News. The closures fall during the olive harvest, and she said: "This is bound to have devastating effects on the season."
What the FCDO says
The FCDO advises against all but essential travel to the rest of the West Bank, except for East Jerusalem, Bethlehem Governorate, Ramallah Municipality, Jericho municipality and all areas south of it (including the Allenby crossing), Highway 1 between Jerusalem and Tel Aviv and the areas south and west of it (including Highway 3), and Route 443 and Highway 45. Hebron is not one of the exceptions. The FCDO advises against all travel to Tulkarm, Jenin and Tubas governorates, except Route 90.
The page was last updated on 22 July 2026, and that change concerned regional tensions with Iran. It has not been updated since the Hebron attack.
What is not in the record
The UN Spokesman gave no casualty figures. The figures above are UN News citing news reports. No source names the attackers or any group. UN News reported that Israel's Prime Minister reportedly threatened a wider assault on a scale not seen since the Six-Day War, but no source gives the actual scope or duration of any operation, or any number of demolitions, raids or people displaced. The OHCHR comments are as reported by UN News.
What it means for operators
These are Ops Con planning points, not UN or FCDO guidance.
Treat Hebron and movement in the southern West Bank as subject to closure at short notice. The city's entrances and exits were shut on the day of the attack, and UN News reported this was the fourth time in a month Israel had imposed restrictions across the territory.
Build time and alternative routes into any West Bank movement plan, and confirm the status of crossings and checkpoints on the day.
Settler violence is a separate risk from the closures. OHCHR's count of more than 160 settler attacks in the first two weeks of October involved live ammunition, arson, crop theft and damage to olive groves, and the harvest is under way. Movement through farming areas during the harvest needs that risk in the plan.
Check the FCDO page on the day of tasking. It has not changed since July, which does not mean conditions have not.
