‘No freedom at all’: Israeli closures leave West Bank patients trapped

What the report says

Al Jazeera reports that Israeli military closures imposed across parts of the occupied West Bank since Friday evening have sharply disrupted access to hospitals, especially around Nablus. The restrictions followed Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s order for a “wide-scale military operation” after an incident in the village of Tal. Ambulance driver Yousef Diriya told the outlet he was held for four hours at Awarta checkpoint while carrying kidney dialysis patients, and said some trips that normally cover about 20km now require detours of up to 100km.

The report focuses on medical consequences for Palestinians delayed at checkpoints. It cites ambulance driver Bashar al-Qaryuti’s testimony to Wafa that a six-month pregnant woman bleeding heavily was stopped at Awarta for about 30 minutes and searched before reaching hospital; Al Jazeera reports the fetus died before arrival. In Aqraba, near Nablus, Dr Ayser Bani Jaber said two women in labour had to deliver at a small clinic because ambulances could not reach Rafidia Hospital, with one later needing emergency transfer for bleeding.

Al Jazeera places the latest closures within a wider pattern of movement restrictions in the West Bank, reporting that Nablus, Ramallah-area towns and areas as far south as Bethlehem have been affected. The article also cites recent deaths of a three-month-old infant near Ramallah and a 30-year-old woman from Sinjil after alleged delays or blocked ambulance passage.

Imran Anati of Physicians for Human Rights-Israel told Al Jazeera the healthcare system is “collapsing” and described the closures as collective punishment. The report cites UN figures of about 925 Israeli-imposed movement obstacles affecting an estimated 3.4 million Palestinians, and WHO documentation of 233 attacks on healthcare in the West Bank in 2025.