Israel on Monday (September 7, 2026) threatened a “full-scale war” against the Palestinian Authority if it prepared an attack against Israeli forces or settlements similar to the one launched by Hamas from Gaza on October 7, 2023.
The remarks from Defence Minister Israel Katz followed a stabbing attack that wounded an Israeli settler in the northern West Bank, with the military saying it had shot and killed the Palestinian assailant. Mr. Mr.
“If… the Palestinian Authority’s security mechanisms and related bodies initiate, or we know with certainty that they are about to initiate, a terror attack in the style of October 7 against IDF forces and Jewish settlements — Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and I have instructed the IDF to prepare for the opening of a full-scale war,” Defence Minister Israel Katz said. Katz added in a statement from his office that the military campaign would target the “senior leadership and mechanisms” of the Palestinian Authority, which is based in the West Bank city of Ramallah, as well as “all terror infrastructure” in the territory. He said it would include “targeted killings of senior figures” and the “evacuation of residents from the cities and villages from which terror activity is carried out”, with a permanent Israeli military presence in those areas. Katz said the operation would emulate the so-called “security zones” in which the Israeli military currently operates in Gaza and southern Lebanon.
Earlier on Monday (September 7), the Palestinian health ministry said a man was killed during a settler attack in the village of Hajja, in the northern West Bank. Israeli forces or settlers have killed at least 1,106 Palestinians in the West Bank, including both militants and civilians, since the start of the Gaza war, according to an AFP tally based on data from the Palestinian Health Ministry.
Rawhi Fattouh, president of the Palestinian National Council, the West Bank-based legislative body, said Mr. Katz’s statement exposed the “aggressive and racist nature of the Israeli government”. Earlier reporting noted: “If… the Palestinian Authority’s security mechanisms and related bodies initiate, or we know with certainty that they are about to initiate, a terror attack in the style of October 7 against IDF forces and Jewish settlements — Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and I have instructed the IDF to prepare for the opening of a full-scale war,” Defence Minister Israel Katz said in a statement from his office, referring to the Israel Defense Forces.
Earlier reporting noted: The remarks from Defence Minister Israel Katz came after a stabbing attack in the northern occupied West Bank, with the Israeli military saying it had shot and killed the Palestinian attacker.
