On August 26, 2025, Israeli forces carried out a large-scale raid in Ramallah. It began with a sudden incursion by a Mist’arvim unit, which triggered panic among civilians. When armored vehicles stormed the heart of the town, firing tear gas canisters, stun grenades, and live bullets, young Palestinians responded by throwing stones. The raid lasted 3.5 hours before the forces withdrew.

Timeline of Events:

Around 12:00 p.m. local time, Israeli armored vehicles entered the center of Ramallah during peak daytime hours. Forces immediately began firing live ammunition, stun grenades, and tear gas canisters into the crowded city center. Civilians were present in cafés, markets, and businesses at the time.

Israeli soldiers broke into a major money exchange business (Ajjouli) in the heart of Ramallah and according to local sources, they stole nearly one million shekels (approximately $270,000 USD); and the Arab Bank headquarters in Manara Square. Eyewitnesses reported soldiers taking sniper positions on rooftops, with one soldier perched above the Arab Bank aiming into the square.

Armored vehicles blocked the central streets, cutting off access. Tensions reamin high as dozens of Israeli occupation soldiers break into the Al-Manara Square in downtown Ramallah, sparking confrontations with residents. Forces went very close to Al-Muqata'a, the headquarters of Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas.

Café patrons saw armored vehicles outside the Arab Bank, soldiers stationed by entrances, and rifles trained on civilians in the square.

Dozens of Palestinians were injured:

8 by live bullets. 14 by rubber-coated bullets including a 71-year-old man 5 by shrapnel: One student trapped in a cosmetics store with 12 others (men, women, children) described panic, explosions, and shared scarce food (dates). An elderly woman inside remarked: “May God help the people in Gaza,” linking their suffering to the famine in Gaza. Another 31 Palestinians suffered tear gas inhalation, including two pregnant women: Tear gas and stun grenades were fired into local businesses, including a barber shop, a popular coffee shop, the vegetable market, several storefronts,... Witnesses inside shops reported suffocating from gas even after doors and windows were shut. Israeli occupation forces detained Palestinian women inside a beauty salon and fired stun grenades at them.

Victims included a 12-year-old child hit by live fire. The Palestinian Ministry of Health said he underwent surgery after being wounded in the abdomen.

Another injured is a 71-year-old elderly man.

A witness saw a young man shot in the leg, bleeding heavily before being carried to an ambulance.

The Palestinian Red Crescent Society reported their ambulances were blocked from reaching at least one injured person.

Al Jazeera speaks about 58 Palestinians wounded by Israeli army raid including a child.

Aftermath:

Israeli troops were seen arresting several men, including two elderly ones.

Palestinian authorities statement:

The Palestinian Authority has strongly condemned the Israeli military's raid on Ramallah on August 26, 2025, describing it as a "dangerous escalation" and "acts of aggression" against the Palestinian people. The Presidency held the Israeli government fully responsible for the violence and destruction, urging the United States to intervene and halt these actions in the occupied West Bank. The Presidency emphasized that such attacks aim to force Palestinians from their land and displace them, warning that the situation could lead to a major explosion in the region. The Palestinian leadership reiterated that Palestinians will not leave their land or relinquish their holy sites, calling for international action to end these Israeli practices and prevent further escalation.

Local officials, condemned the raid and Leila Ghannam, Ramallah governor, called it “organized state terrorism.”. She tried to stop the Israeli soldiers by standing in their way peacefully. But in vain.

IDF spokesman spin:

The IDF presented the Ramallah raid as a counter-terrorism operation targeting a money exchange business allegedly funneling funds to Hamas, under the broader Operation Iron Wall launched in January 2025. They claimed to have confiscated “hundreds of thousands of shekels” and arrested five suspects, framing the strike as part of a campaign to degrade Palestinian terrorist infrastructure. The IDF emphasized that such operations have led to an 85% reduction in terrorist attacks in 2025 and vowed to continue targeting financial networks and operational capabilities of West Bank militant groups.

**Broader Context: **

Ramallah and al-Bireh (twin cities) are officially classified as Area A under the Oslo Accords, meaning they should be under exclusive Palestinian Authority security control. Israeli forces raid more rarely this city than the northern camps in the West Bank after the Second Intifada ended (2006).

In December 2023: They launched a large raid, killed a 23-year-old and confiscated $2.8M from money exchanges. In May 2024, they raided the city, fired tear gas fired into the vegetable market, causing a fire that destroyed 80+ businesses.