Four days after a terrorist attack near Havat Gilad killed Maj. Yuval Ezra and Master Sgt. (Res.) Binyahu Melet, the Israel Defense Forces announced that Palestinian workers would be permitted to re-enter Israeli communities in Judea and Samaria beginning Tuesday. The IDF said the decision followed a new security assessment and would allow Palestinian laborers to resume work in the region under existing security procedures for industrial zones and residential areas.
The move reversed the military's position from the previous day, when Central Command chief Maj. Gen. Avi Bluth had ordered a complete halt to Palestinian worker entry in response to the attack.
National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir opposed the reversal, stating that "The retreat by the commander of Central Command in allowing the return of 'Palestinian' workers to communities in Judea and Samaria is a grave mistake that could cost us precious Jewish blood." He called on Prime Minister Binyomin Netanyahu to intervene, saying, "I call on the Prime Minister to instruct the Chief of Staff to immediately cancel Maj. Gen. Bluth's decision, which sends a message of surrender to terrorism."