Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has warned the Palestinian Authority that a “very big surprise” is coming, refusing to disclose what measures he intends to take while threatening a military offensive in the occupied West Bank on a scale not seen since the 1967 war.
The warning comes as Israeli forces intensify operations in Hebron, where residential neighbourhoods have been subjected to demolitions and forced evacuations following a deadly attack on Israeli soldiers.
Netanyahu’s remarks have raised questions about whether the latest military escalation could extend beyond Hebron, particularly as Israel approaches parliamentary elections and his right-wing coalition faces uncertainty over its political future.
Netanyahu’s Message: The Palestinian Authority Will Not See It Coming
In an interview with Israeli television channel i24NEWS, Netanyahu described the Palestinian Authority itself as a threat that his government intends to confront.
Rather than outline a specific policy or military strategy, he indicated that he would rely on measures he preferred not to announce in advance.
The Israeli prime minister presented surprise as a central element of his approach, suggesting that his government would carry out its intended actions before publicly revealing their nature.
His warning came at a time of intensified Israeli military activity across the occupied West Bank, adding uncertainty over whether the threatened measures would involve further military operations, political decisions or other actions against the Palestinian Authority.
Netanyahu did not specify what the promised “very big surprise” would entail.
‘We Will Do Something That Has Never Been Done Before’
The prime minister’s threats followed an armed attack near Hebron that killed two Israeli soldiers and wounded others.
Netanyahu subsequently appeared in Hebron, where he announced plans for a retaliatory military operation and outlined an approach modelled on previous Israeli campaigns in Palestinian refugee camps.
“We will do something that has not been done before. We will apply the successful, offensive model that we implemented in the refugee camps, which are, in fact, strongholds of terrorism,” Netanyahu declared.
The description of the refugee camps as terrorist strongholds reflected Netanyahu’s characterisation of those areas.
In a separate video address, he outlined measures that would directly affect Palestinian residential communities.
Israeli forces, he said, would enter the neighbourhoods from which the perpetrators of the attack had come, evacuate their inhabitants and search every home for weapons.
More consequentially, Netanyahu indicated that the army would replicate the measures previously implemented in refugee camps in the northern occupied West Bank, including demolitions, displacement and the clearing of residential areas.
The statements signalled that the military response would not be limited to pursuing those responsible for the checkpoint attack, but would extend to the neighbourhoods where they had lived.
Hebron Under Siege as Israel Considers Expanding the Operation
Israeli occupation forces have imposed a siege on Hebron and the nearby town of Halhul as the military campaign continues.
Footage from the city has shown Israeli forces demolishing Palestinian homes and evacuating residents from extensive areas, while the Israeli government is reportedly considering expanding the operation into additional locations.
On Friday evening, the Israeli military formally announced the beginning of an operation in Hebron, in the southern occupied West Bank, which it said would continue for several days.
The announcement followed the armed attack that killed two soldiers and injured others.
In its statement, the Israeli army said the operation was being conducted in cooperation with the Shin Bet internal security agency, the Border Police and the Civil Administration.
The forces were deployed in the area from which the two Palestinian attackers had originated. Both men had been killed earlier on Friday.
The involvement of multiple Israeli security and administrative bodies reflects the breadth of the operation, which now encompasses military raids, residential evacuations and property demolitions.
With Israeli authorities examining the possibility of extending the campaign, Palestinian communities beyond the initial operational area could also face similar measures.
An Offensive Not Seen Since 1967?
Netanyahu has gone further than announcing an operation in Hebron.
He declared that the Israeli military would undertake a large-scale and powerful campaign in the West Bank unlike anything witnessed since the 1967 war.
The comparison carries particular historical weight for Palestinians, as the 1967 war marked the beginning of Israel’s occupation of the West Bank, including East Jerusalem, and the Gaza Strip.
The prime minister also pointed to the expansion of Israeli settlements under his government.
Netanyahu claimed that his administration had established more than 100 new settlements and settlement outposts, promising that further construction would follow.
The combination of a threatened military escalation and renewed commitments to settlement expansion places Israel’s activities in the occupied West Bank at the centre of the government’s stated agenda.
While Netanyahu has not disclosed the full scope of his intended measures, his references to 1967 and the replication of operations in northern West Bank refugee camps suggest an approach extending beyond the immediate aftermath of the Hebron attack.
Is Another Military Escalation Becoming an Election Strategy?
The timing of Netanyahu’s statements has also attracted attention from observers of Israeli politics.
Hours after the Hebron attack, former Israeli negotiator Daniel Levy raised the possibility that further military escalation could become intertwined with Netanyahu’s electoral calculations.
“Will Netanyahu launch another war on polling day or as part of building a coalition?” Levy asked.
He argued that another violent escalation by the governing coalition would not be surprising, given what he described as its longstanding record of continuous wars against Palestinians.
Levy’s remarks raised the question of whether military action in the occupied Palestinian territories could also serve domestic political objectives as Israel approaches its parliamentary elections.
His assessment remains a political interpretation rather than evidence of a confirmed electoral plan.
Nevertheless, Netanyahu’s warning of undisclosed measures against the Palestinian Authority, his pledge of an unprecedented military campaign and his commitment to further settlement construction have emerged alongside an expanding operation in Hebron.
For Palestinians facing evacuations and demolitions, the consequences of the current military campaign are already visible, even as the full extent of Netanyahu’s promised “surprise” remains unknown.
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