Smotrich calls for war in the occupied West Bank, dismantling the Palestinian Authority

Israeli Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich has called for a full military operation in the occupied West Bank, mirroring Israel's campaign in Gaza.

• Smotrich told Ynet News that Israel should "go to war" in the occupied West Bank and dismantle the Palestinian Authority, which he called a "terror authority."
• Smotrich said Israeli forces should be told "just as you dismantled Hamas in Gaza," vowing no terror infrastructure, weapons, or tunnels would remain in the territory.
• Israeli authorities have announced a week-long military closure across the occupied West Bank through October 3, citing the Jewish holiday of Sukkot.
• Hundreds of Israelis stormed the Al-Aqsa Mosque compound in Jerusalem under heavy police protection on Sunday.
• Egypt's Foreign Ministry condemned the Israeli escalation in the occupied West Bank and rejected calls for expanded operations undermining the Palestinian Authority.
• The Palestinian Foreign Ministry warned that Smotrich's remarks were an explicit call to escalate aggression and expand annexation and displacement, urging the UN Security Council and the US to intervene.
• Smotrich also called for annexing parts of southern Lebanon up to the Litani River and parts of Gaza, arguing that ending the war without territorial changes would not deter future attacks.
• Smotrich's remarks, published on Sunday, come about a month before Israel's upcoming general election amid a surge in settler violence.
• Adalah legal director Suhad Bishara described the remarks as a public declaration of intent to commit war crimes and crimes against humanity in the West Bank.