How to survive Israel's war in the West Bank | Close | The Israeli-Palestinian conflict

“Our job is to provide medical aid only, and we should not be punished for it – either by suspicion, arrest or death,” said Safiya al-Bibissi, an ambulance driver for the Palestinian Red Crescent as she described the first treatment. they do not respond to Israeli forces in the illegally occupied West Bank.

Despite the risks, al-Bibissi drives an ambulance through blocked roads and restricted areas to reach patients in Tulkarem. “We are targeted all the time; it's a mental breakdown,” he adds, noting that his uniform does not provide protection from violence from Israeli forces.

Since the Gaza war began, the Palestine Red Crescent has reported at least 750 violations of its staff and patients in the West Bank. In September, the Israeli army launched a major offensive in an area hit by the second Intifada, killing 18 people, including children, in Tulkarem. The destruction of Palestinian homes, roads and infrastructure, such as water and sewage systems, has made it even more difficult for emergency workers to reach those in need.

The Palestinians in the occupied territory are now struggling to find basic necessities, including food and water. “I don't think that anyone living in this situation can consider themselves free,” said Raghad al-Fanni, who is also a resident of Tulkarem. Al-Fanni spent more than a year in an Israeli prison without being formally charged – under the practice of legal detention, which allows Israel to detain Palestinians without trial or explanation. At least 3,300 Palestinians remain in Israeli prisons under this program.

Al-Fanni was released last year during a four-day ceasefire between Israel and Hamas, which included an exchange of Israeli hostages for Palestinian prisoners in Israel. “Now, if you go through a day without feeling the fear of external danger, that alone is a success,” he remembers. Life on the outside remains a challenge, as the uncertainty he faced in prison continues under work.

In this case Nearby episode, watch stories of resilience amid escalating violence as the human cost of the ongoing conflict in the consuming West Bank mounts.

Credits:

Director/Writer: Tierney Bonini

Producer: Manar Altell

Associate Producer: Alreem Al-Maadeed

Editor: Farah Fayed

Additional editor: Antonia Perello

Color: Catherine Hallinan

Sound producer: Linus Bergman

Editor-in-Chief: Donald Cameron