IDF issues demolition order for home of terrorist who killed Israeli man near Hebron

The Israeli military on Sunday night informed the family of a Palestinian man who carried out a deadly terror attack near the West Bank settlement of Kiryat Arba in October, that their home in the adjacent city of Hebron is slated for demolition.

Muhammed Kamel al-Jabari, an apparent member of the Hamas terror group, carried out the shooting attack near a convenience store owned by a Palestinian, between Kiryat Arba and Hebron on October 29.

Ronen Hanania, an Israeli resident of Kiryat Arba, was killed and his son was wounded in the initial attack. Al-Jabari left the scene by car and returned on foot several minutes later, and opened fire on medics and settlement security guards who arrived at the scene to help the pair.

This gunfire seriously injured veteran paramedic and settler activist Ofer Ohana, who has since mostly recovered. Two others, including a Palestinian man, were also hurt in the attack.

A security guard eventually rammed Al-Jabari with his vehicle and he was shot dead by an off-duty soldier.

In the hours after the attack, Israeli troops measured al-Jabari’s home — the first step before its potential demolition — in Hebron.

On Sunday, his family was notified of the military’s intention to raze their home.

Israel regularly demolishes the homes of Palestinians accused of carrying out deadly terror attacks as a matter of policy. The efficacy of the policy has been hotly debated even within the Israeli security establishment, while human rights activists denounce the practice as unjust collective punishment.

Al-Jabari’s family can still appeal the decision to raze the home to Israel’s High Court of Justice. But such attempts rarely succeed, though in some cases the court can limit the demolition order to only the parts of the house used by the terrorist.

A security source said al-Jabari suffered from terminal cancer and had only a few days to live, which may have been among the reasons for the attack.

In recent months, Palestinian gunmen have repeatedly targeted military posts, troops operating along the West Bank security barrier, Israeli settlements, and civilians on the roads.

The attacks came during an Israeli anti-terror offensive mostly focused on the northern West Bank to following a series of Palestinian attacks that have left 31 people in Israel and the West Bank dead since the start of the year.

The operation has netted more than 2,500 arrests in near-nightly raids, but has also left over 165 Palestinians dead, many of them — but not all — while carrying out attacks or during clashes with security forces.