Ramallah: Israeli forces on Friday sealed off the main entrance of al-Tireh village, southwest of the occupied West Bank city of Ramallah, according to local sources. They reported that the forces conducted a large-scale raid in the village, ransacking numerous houses, interrogating occupants, and blocking the entrance with earth mounds.
According to Palestine News and Information Agency - WAFA, the occupying forces also closed the metal gate at the eastern entrance of Anata town, east of Jerusalem, preventing Palestinians from entering or exiting the town. These actions are part of increased military measures across the occupied West Bank following the release of the first batch of Palestinian prisoners as part of the Gaza ceasefire initiated in January 2025. The measures have isolated cities and governorates from one another through the use of military gates, barriers, and concrete blocks.
The restrictions on movement within the occupied West Bank are compounded by approximately 917 fixed and flying checkpoints and gates, including 244 gates installed after October 7, 2023. These obstructions include settler-only roads, over 200 military bases, and other physical barriers.
The Israeli military measures coincide with ongoing attacks by Israeli colonists throughout the West Bank, aiming to intimidate Palestinians and displace them from their lands to make way for the construction of illegal Jewish colonies. These colonies further fragment Palestinian communities.
The closures, along with other security measures, aim to fortify Israel's military occupation of the West Bank, now in its 59th year, and its settler colonial project, which is enforced through routine and often deadly violence against Palestinians.