Israeli security forces conducted a weeklong series of counterterrorism operations across Judea and Samaria, resulting in the arrest of approximately 75 suspects linked to terror organizations and the seizure of more than 40 illegal weapons. The broad campaign, coordinated by the Israel Defense Forces (IDF), Shin Bet (Israel Security Agency), and National Police, responded to ongoing threats posed by Iranian-backed militant networks operating from these territories.
The joint operations represent Israel’s continued effort to contain and disrupt terrorist activity in territories central to the regional war against Iranian proxies. In coordinated raids across towns and refugee camps, Israeli forces arrested high-profile terror operatives, uncovered planned attacks, and located arms caches intended for use against both security personnel and civilians. One of the most significant operations last week involved the apprehension of the leader of a major terror cell in Balata, a neighborhood long recognized as a hub for Hamas and Islamic Jihad activity. According to security sources, the suspect played a central role in planning recent attacks and was found with evidence linking him to broader efforts to destabilize the area.
Elsewhere, in the Ephraim Brigade sector near Qalqilya, forces detained a suspect actively plotting a terror attack based on actionable intelligence provided by the Shin Bet. In Hebron, under the Judea Brigade’s command, security personnel discovered a weapons cache consisting of firearms, ammunition, and explosive materials hidden inside a women’s clothing shop. The cache, believed to be supplied by Hamas’s local logistics network, highlights how terror cells exploit civilian infrastructure for military ends, endangering both local residents and security forces.
The campaign also saw the demolition of the home belonging to a terrorist in al-Ram village in the Binyamin sector, executed following due legal process and longstanding Israeli policy to deter participation in and support for terror. Security officials stress that such measures are taken as a last resort with the express goal of disrupting cycles of violence encouraged by financial incentives from terrorist leadership abroad.
Israeli authorities attribute the fresh wave of arrest operations and weapons seizures to the ongoing implications of the October 7, 2023, massacre, the deadliest attack against Jews since the Holocaust. That atrocity, carried out by thousands of Hamas-led terrorists, continues to drive Israel’s sense of vulnerability and its uncompromising approach to defending its population from Iran’s extensive terror network in the region. Since then, intelligence and operational tempo have sharply increased, resulting in hundreds of arrests and dozens of weapons caches seized in Judea and Samaria alone.
Officials note that every operation is rooted in precise intelligence and legal authority, with counterterrorism forces acting to preempt attacks and save lives. The use of weapons, bomb-making materials, and terrorist propaganda discovered in these raids illustrates the scale and reach of Iranian-backed organizations and their intention to export violence into Israel’s heartland. Senior security officials reiterate the commitment to act within the bounds of international law, minimize disruptions to ordinary residents, and protect the innocent against the indiscriminate tactics commonly employed by groups like Hamas.
