An Israeli soldier died and an officer was seriously injured overnight when their jeep detonated a bomb planted at the roadside in the town of Tamun in the north of the West Bank, the Israeli military reported on Monday.
No one has yet claimed responsibility for the attack.
Israeli Chief of the General Staff Herzi Halevi announced a major military operation in the area the next day.
“Apart from intensive preparations for defence in the Gaza Strip, we have to be prepared for large-scale operations in Judea and Samaria to forestall the terrorists and to capture them before they reach our civilian population,” Halevi said, using Israeli terms for the West Bank.
Tensions have risen in the occupied West Bank since the October 7, 2023, attacks mounted by the Palestinian militant organization Hamas from the Gaza Strip.
According to the Palestinian Health Ministry, more than 800 Palestinians have been killed in Israeli military operations and in attacks by Jewish settlers.
