Ramallah- In the town of Beit Dajan, east of a city Nablus In the north of the West Bank, the Palestinian elderly, Thabet Abu Thabet, felt severe pain in his foot, and after examining it in the local clinic, his condition was diagnosed as the beginning of a stroke, and he was quickly transferred to the nearest hospital for treatment.
But “the closest” here is not available. The Israeli military barrier Abu Thabet separated the Rafidia Hospital in Nablus,; After the widespread Israeli attack on Iran at dawn on Friday, the occupation authorities imposed a strict closure of provinces West Bank The mobility and traffic has been prevented, including ambulances across hundreds of barriers and military gates.
Abu Thabet was forced to accompany his son and his grandson in their own car towards the military barrier at the entrance to the neighboring town of Beit Furik, in the hope of allowing them to pass. He waited there for more than 4 continuous hours, during which he made contacts with the Palestinian Liaison, which coordinates the transit and movement with the Israeli side, due to his critical health condition, but to no avail.
“Until the treatment, he needs security coordination with the occupation,” Abu Thabet, 75, told Al -Jazeera Net.
Finally, the soldiers opened the barrier for a short time, and Abu Thabet managed to cross and receive treatment, but he faced a similar journey on the way back, as the soldiers threatened his son to shoot him when he tried to explain the health condition and provide medical reports.
They were unable to return to the town, and they had to stay overnight in Nablus, and the next day Abu Thabet returned again to try his “luck”, waiting for the soldiers to change their opinion and open the barrier for a few minutes.
“I am not alone … dozens of patients have been waiting since the morning at the checkpoint, some of them are transferred to the emergency family under the iron gates,” he said.
Big prison
Beit Forek barrier is one of dozens of barriers that have been restored Israel The movement’s tightening through it since October 20, 2023, but it has become more strict after the attack on Iran And the Iranian response to Israel, where the occupation authorities added iron gates before and after the barrier, to find about 25 thousand Palestinians themselves trapped inside what looks like a “great prison”, according to the description of the people.
Abu Thabet is an example of hundreds of Palestinians who have been stranded for days outside their towns, who spend long hours waiting for an opportunity to pass, and they have become hostage to the mood of Israeli soldiers.
With the start of the Israeli military operation against Iran, the occupation imposed a comprehensive security cordon on the West Bank, closed the military barriers and gates simultaneously, the population gatherings were removed from the towns, villages and cities of each other completely, and the cities separated their neighborhoods, villages and camps.
While some barriers are opened for minutes, they are closed for long hours without warning.
Closure
The Palestinian expert sees in affairs Settlement Suhail Khalilia, that this closure is the result of “a deliberate plan to control the West Bank in the emergency situations.” He told Al -Jazeera Net that the number of barriers spread in the West Bank exceeded 900 checkpoints and a military gate, after it was less than 600 before the war began on Gaza Strip.
He added that the occupation authorities installed dozens of iron gates at the entrances to population gatherings since the beginning of this year, which allowed them to close the entire West Bank and paralyze the population movement at any moment.
This restrictions – with the scarcity of supplies, especially the fuel – increased the suffering of about 3 million Palestinians who lived in the West Bank, and led to almost paralysis of the movement within these areas.
Without shelters
Since the start of the attack on Iran, the restrictions on the movement of the Palestinians of the West Bank are not limited, as they lack any protection in light of the escalation of bombing and mutual shelling.
Comments on social media raised questions about the absence of emergency plans, the absence of food security, and a role Palestinian Authority Which was limited to issuing instructions through short messages related to preventive measures during the bombing.
According to a spokesman for the Supreme Council of Civil Defense, Nael Al -Azza, the plan includes public safety instructions, activating volunteers, and a quick response to reports, including fires and mild injuries due to the fall of missile fragments, especially from the objections they launch.Iron DomeIsraeli.
Regarding the absence of shelters, Al -Azza explained to Al -Jazeera Net, that the civil defense is working within a long -term strategic plan for the construction of shelters, but at the present time the residents are directed to act according to the available capabilities, and shelter in the ground floors and stay away from the windows, given the relatively strong nature of construction in the Palestinian territories.
For its part, the Palestinian government held a meeting with the beginning of the attack on Iran, and announced the availability of a stock of basic commodities enough for 3 months, and confirmed that arrangements are taken to ensure the continuity of basic services such as fuel, gas and health care.
But on the ground, the West Bank witnessed a severe shortage of fuel, and a great crowding over the stations, amid reports of a supply deficit, despite the assurances of the Palestinian Petroleum Authority that supplies are available.
The Executive Director of the Bisan Center for Research and Development, Abi Aboudi, criticized what he described as “government palaces” in responding to exceptional circumstances. “Until now, the government has not announced a state of emergency, and we have not witnessed actual measures on the ground,” he told Al -Jazeera Net.
He added that the instructions sent to citizens do not rise to the level of government responsibilities facing a crisis of this size, stressing that the comprehensive closure of the West Bank is a political escalation that requires political intervention not limited to directives and instructions.
Celebrations anger the occupation
Despite the atmosphere of tension, the fall of Iranian missiles in Israeli cities was a source of joy among many Palestinians, especially after about two years of the Israeli war on Gaza.
However, these simple celebrations sparked the anger of the occupation, which began with raid and arrest campaigns targeting those who expressed their joy, especially through the media or in the streets.
In the town of Azzun in the northern West Bank, the occupation forces stormed more than 400 homes since the second day of the war, and arrested dozens of young men, some of whom were released later.
The mayor of Azzun, Fadl Diwari, told Al -Jazeera Net that the soldiers informed the people that the town was “more than one of the missiles”, and that the raids will only stop with the end of “the manifestations of joy.”
Israeli officers on the communication sites broadcast pictures of Palestinian detainees, accompanied by comments confirming the continuation of the campaign against “everyone who celebrated what Iran has done.”