The operation, focused on the city of Hebron, the site of Friday's attack, came as Israel enters the final days before a tense election, which is largely seen as a referendum on current Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's leadership and security policies during the past three years of war.

Kiryat Shmona, Israel's northernmost city, has long been a bastion of support for Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's Likud party. But that loyalty is no longer ironclad.