Israel shuts down for Yom Kippur, after deadly West Bank terror shooting and with IDF on high alert

Israel shut down Sunday afternoon for Yom Kippur, the holiest day on the Jewish calendar, which begins at sundown and ends Monday night.

Times of Israel’s news coverage will resume when the Yom Kippur fast ends in Israel.

The Day of Atonement came amid violence across the region.

In the West Bank, just hours before the start of Yom Kippur, a man in his 30s was killed in a terror attack when a gunman opened fire on Israelis who had gathered for the traditional practice of immersing in a natural spring ahead of the holiday. The IDF later captured the alleged terrorist responsible.

Separately, the army said troops shot dead a Palestinian who allegedly attempted to ram forces in the West Bank with his vehicle.

Meanwhile, tensions persisted in the war between the US and Iran, and fighting continued between the Tehran-backed Houthi rebels in Yemen and a Saudi-led coalition.

Israeli soldiers remain deployed in Gaza, southern Lebanon, and southwestern Syria, and settler violence has surged in the West Bank, where the Jewish holidays have previously been a time of heightened tension. The holiday season began with Rosh Hashanah 10 days ago, and will continue through Simchat Torah on October 3.

For Israel, it was the first year since 2023 when Yom Kippur arrived without major fighting on any front; Hamas’s October 7, 2023, attack took place less than two weeks after the holiday that year. This was also the first Yom Kippur in more than a decade that no Israelis were held captive in Gaza.

The Israel Defense Forces said Friday it was ramping up its forces on all fronts ahead of the fast day, with additional companies deployed in the Northern, Southern, and Central commands, and a senior officer on duty in each sector during the holiday.

A senior commander told Channel 13 that the situation in Gaza was “calm” but said the IDF “would not get complacent.” The commander said the army did not discount the possibility that it may have to resume major ground operations in the Strip.

The Kerem Shalom border crossing with Gaza was closed on Sunday and Monday, and crossings into Jordan and Egypt – including the Allenby Crossing, in the West Bank – were also set to shut down for the holiday, reopening Monday night and Tuesday.

Israel Railways ended its services at 1 p.m., to resume on Tuesday. Buses, both intercity and local, stopped running completely by 3 p.m., with services to resume on Monday night. Light rail lines shut down by 2 p.m.

The last flights in and out of Ben Gurion Airport came and went at around 2 p.m., with the first arrival after the holiday slated for 10:30 p.m. on Monday, and the first departure an hour after that. Israel closes its airspace for the duration of the holiday each year.

About three-quarters of Jewish Israelis fast on Yom Kippur, according to an August poll by the Israel Democracy Institute, including about half of those who identify as secular.

Among those who identify as Orthodox or ultra-Orthodox, overwhelming majorities (more than 97%) observe the full fast from sundown on Sunday to nightfall on Monday, while 90% of those who identify as traditional observe either the full fast or a partial fast.

Among secular Jews in Israel, 28% observe a full fast, and 19% a partial fast.

A majority (57%) of Jewish Israelis attend synagogue services on Yom Kippur – mostly Orthodox services, though 6% of Jewish Israelis pray at Reform or Conservative services.

About a third of those who attend synagogue on Yom Kippur don’t typically do so on any other day of the year.

Many traditional and religious Jews also attend Selichot services in the days and weeks leading up to the holiday, reciting special penitential prayers, either early in the morning or late at night.

Tens of thousands attended “selichot” services at the Western Wall in Jerusalem on Saturday night, with the Western Wall Heritage Foundation placing the number at some 150,000. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu attended from a perch above the main event.

מי כעמך ישראל! מאות אלפים ברחבת הכותל המערבי באמירת סליחות לפני כיפור pic.twitter.com/xdIbXT1NI6

— ישראל כהן (@Israelcohen911) September 19, 2026

Driving on the Day of Atonement is considered taboo, and roads are generally empty of cars, save for occasional emergency vehicles. Many secular Israelis also treat the day as a cycling holiday, taking advantage of the car-free roads, including highways.

Yom Kippur is one of the busiest days of the year for emergency calls, with hundreds of extra medics, paramedics, ambulances and volunteers deployed across the country.

Most injuries come from bicycle accidents. Other common Yom Kippur injuries are caused by parents leaving children unattended outside synagogues and by dehydration and complications from fasting.