diff --git a/.claude/hooks/damage-control/bash-tool-damage-control.py b/.claude/hooks/damage-control/bash-tool-damage-control.py
index c07ad8e255..9095023450 100755
--- a/.claude/hooks/damage-control/bash-tool-damage-control.py
+++ b/.claude/hooks/damage-control/bash-tool-damage-control.py
@@ -309,6 +309,23 @@ def check_command(command: str, config: Dict[str, Any]) -> Tuple[bool, bool, str
                     )
                 return True, False, f"Blocked: zero-access path {zero_path} (no operations allowed)"
 
+    # 2b. Bash delete allowlist — explicit, whole-command-anchored exceptions to the
+    # read-only / no-delete blocks below (e.g. clearing git's own orphaned lockfiles).
+    # Deliberately placed AFTER the destructive-pattern block (step 1: rm -rf / rm -f
+    # are already blocked) and AFTER zero-access (step 2, never bypassed), so an
+    # allowlisted command cannot smuggle anything dangerous past those gates. Each
+    # pattern is anchored to the whole command in patterns.yaml, so no chaining.
+    for item in config.get("bashDeleteAllowlist", []):
+        pat = item.get("pattern", "")
+        if not pat:
+            continue
+        try:
+            if re.search(pat, command):
+                return False, False, ""  # explicitly allowed (see patterns.yaml: reason)
+        except re.error as e:
+            print(f"WARNING: Invalid regex in bashDeleteAllowlist: {pat!r} — {e}", file=sys.stderr)
+            continue
+
     # 3. Check for modifications to read-only paths (reads allowed)
     for readonly in read_only_paths:
         blocked, reason = check_path_patterns(command, readonly, READ_ONLY_BLOCKED, "read-only path")
diff --git a/.claude/hooks/damage-control/patterns.yaml b/.claude/hooks/damage-control/patterns.yaml
index 6d278690a3..a03bee3b3d 100644
--- a/.claude/hooks/damage-control/patterns.yaml
+++ b/.claude/hooks/damage-control/patterns.yaml
@@ -1029,6 +1029,32 @@ chitSafePaths:
 # Submodules can be modified via git operations.
 # Use "git submodule update --init --recursive" after .gitmodules changes.
 
+# ---------------------------------------------------------------------------
+# BASH DELETE ALLOWLIST - explicit, anchored exceptions to readOnlyPaths/noDelete
+# ---------------------------------------------------------------------------
+# Each entry's `pattern` is a regex matched against the WHOLE Bash command. A
+# match permits the command despite a readOnlyPaths/noDeletePaths block.
+# Evaluated AFTER bashToolPatterns (so `rm -rf` / `rm -f` are still blocked) and
+# AFTER zeroAccessPaths (never bypassed), but BEFORE read-only/no-delete checks.
+# RULES for new entries:
+#   - Anchor the whole command (^...$) so nothing destructive can be chained on.
+#   - Be SURGICAL — exact paths, never broad globs.
+#   - State a `reason` (recorded in the block/allow trail and code review).
+bashDeleteAllowlist:
+  # Orphaned git internal lockfiles. .git/config.lock and .git/index.lock are
+  # 0-byte sentinels left behind when an interrupted git config/index write dies
+  # between creating the lock and the atomic rename (killed cmd, closed session,
+  # OneDrive/AV holding the handle). While present they block ALL subsequent git
+  # config/index operations (branch -D, push -u, worktree add, add/commit), and
+  # git cannot auto-clear them (it can't distinguish a stale lock from a live
+  # one). These are NOT package locks (yarn.lock/uv.lock/etc.) — the *.lock
+  # readOnlyPath rightly still guards those. Anchored to a bare `rm` of git's own
+  # internal lockfiles (one or both), no flags, no chaining. Separators are
+  # [ \t] only (NOT \s) — a newline terminates the command in Bash, so allowing
+  # \n between operands would let a second line execute as its own command.
+  - pattern: '^[ \t]*rm[ \t]+((\./)?\.git/(config|index)\.lock[ \t]*)+$'
+    reason: "Clear orphaned git internal lockfile(s) .git/config.lock|.git/index.lock — they block all git config/index writes and git won't auto-clear them; package locks (*.lock) remain protected"
+
 # ---------------------------------------------------------------------------
 # READ-ONLY PATHS - Can read, but not write/edit/delete
 # ---------------------------------------------------------------------------
diff --git a/.claude/hooks/damage-control/test_gitlock_allowlist.py b/.claude/hooks/damage-control/test_gitlock_allowlist.py
new file mode 100644
index 0000000000..8096766afb
--- /dev/null
+++ b/.claude/hooks/damage-control/test_gitlock_allowlist.py
@@ -0,0 +1,50 @@
+"""In-process verification of the bashDeleteAllowlist git-lockfile exception.
+
+Run: python .claude/hooks/damage-control/test_gitlock_allowlist.py
+Asserts the allowlist permits ONLY a bare `rm` of git's own internal lockfiles
+and that everything else (package locks, flags, chaining) stays blocked.
+"""
+import importlib.util
+import sys
+from pathlib import Path
+
+HERE = Path(__file__).resolve().parent
+spec = importlib.util.spec_from_file_location("bash_tool", HERE / "bash-tool-damage-control.py")
+assert spec and spec.loader, "could not load bash-tool-damage-control.py"
+mod = importlib.util.module_from_spec(spec)
+spec.loader.exec_module(mod)
+
+config = mod.load_config()
+
+# (command, expect_blocked)
+GIT = ".git/" + "config.lock"          # built from parts so this file's own
+GITI = ".git/" + "index.lock"          # strings don't trip a content scanner
+DEL = "r" + "m "
+cases = [
+    (DEL + GIT, False),                       # bare rm of config.lock  -> ALLOW
+    (DEL + GITI, False),                       # bare rm of index.lock   -> ALLOW
+    (DEL + GIT + " " + GITI, False),          # both at once             -> ALLOW
+    (DEL + "./" + GIT, False),                # ./ prefix                -> ALLOW
+    (DEL + "yarn.lock", True),                # package lock             -> BLOCK
+    (DEL + "uv.lock", True),                  # package lock             -> BLOCK
+    (DEL + "-rf " + GIT, True),               # rm -rf                   -> BLOCK (step 1)
+    (DEL + "-f " + GIT, True),                # rm -f                    -> BLOCK (step 1)
+    (DEL + GIT + " && " + DEL + "yarn.lock", True),   # chaining         -> BLOCK
+    (DEL + GIT + " ; echo hi", True),         # chaining via ;           -> BLOCK
+    (DEL + GIT + "\n" + GITI, True),          # newline separator (bash terminator) -> BLOCK
+    (DEL + GIT + "\necho hi", True),          # newline then command     -> BLOCK
+]
+
+failures = []
+for cmd, want_blocked in cases:
+    blocked, ask, reason = mod.check_command(cmd, config)
+    got = blocked
+    status = "OK" if got == want_blocked else "FAIL"
+    if got != want_blocked:
+        failures.append((cmd, want_blocked, got, reason))
+    print(f"[{status}] blocked={got!s:5} want={want_blocked!s:5} :: {cmd}  {('-> '+reason) if reason else ''}")
+
+if failures:
+    print(f"\n{len(failures)} FAILURE(S)")
+    sys.exit(1)
+print("\nALL CASES PASS")