The Israeli military announced it is preparing an extensive counterterrorism operation in the occupied West Bank after a shootout near the Palestinian village of Tell left four Palestinians and two Israelis dead. The violence erupted near the Havat Gilad settlement and neighbouring Tell, southwest of Nablus, following the arrival of Jewish settlers from the outpost.
The Palestinian health ministry reported four Palestinians killed and four wounded. Israeli officials identified the dead soldiers as Major Yuval Ezra and Benayahu Mellet. The four Palestinian victims belonged to the same family: Farouq, Ibrahim, Jawad and Imran Ramadan. Israeli troops later arrested two men from a Nablus hospital who had taken part in the clashes, and the army suspended soldiers' leave across the occupied territory.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who met with military and intelligence chiefs, ordered the acceleration of settlement legalisation and the establishment of new outposts in the West Bank.