Palestine

In the West Bank, particularly in the area around Nablus, people live in a constant state of tension due to the proximity of Israeli settlements. Children and young people are particularly at risk. Surrounded by a significant military presence, the Palestinians frequently have to endure searches and checkpoints.

Some Israeli settlers regularly attack the Palestinian communities – harassment, beatings, stonings, shootings, damage to homes and destruction of crops are a common experience. The attacks by settlers have increased substantially in recent years and are carried out with complete impunity.

These traumas come on top of the multiple forced displacements and demolitions of Palestinian homes by the Israeli occupation authorities (911 demolitions took place in the West Bank during 2021).

2020 also saw the emergence of a new threat to the people of the West Bank in the form of Israel’s plan to annex parts of the Palestinian territories, in particular the northern part of the Jordan Valley and some Israeli settlements. Regarded as illegal in international law, this annexation appears to have been postponed for the moment, but nevertheless remains a threat to civilian populations.

At the same time, it has led to an increased monopolisation of natural resources and land, as well as violence by the Israeli armed forces. All of this is intended to “prepare” the area for potential annexation. The uncertainty continues to have a serious psychological impact on the communities living in the area, especially the Bedouins who have experienced a rise in confiscations and destruction of their property.

In May 2021, an escalation of violence in Gaza resulted in the death of 261 Palestinians over the course of 11 days, including 67 children and 41 women. Over 2,200 Palestinians were injured, among them 685 children and 480 women. There was serious damage to infrastructure, in particular to healthcare facilities. In the West Bank the number of Palestinians killed by the Israeli security forces also rose to 78, compared to 28 in 2020.

The number of Palestinians injured by the Israeli armed forces has increased by 500% compared to 2020, with 15,525 injuries recorded in 2021 as opposed to 2,558 in 2020. A total of 894 Palestinian buildings were demolished in Area C and East Jerusalem compared to 846 in 2020. The numbers of attacks by Israeli settlers resulting in deaths and material damage has also risen, with 358 attacks in 2020 increasing to 496 in 2021. The Covid-19 epidemic, coupled with these violent incidents, has intensified the coercive environment and the vulnerability of the Palestinian communities in need of humanitarian assistance.

The stress and other resulting mental health problems experienced by Palestinians only rarely receive treatment. Medical staff are poorly trained in identifying such conditions and the facilities to which sufferers can be referred are too few in number to meet the level of need. Furthermore, there is stigma around psychological and mental health problems and families do not automatically go to health centres for help with this type of illness.

Following the events of the Great March of Return, Médecins du Monde provided support to the emergency services at a number of health centres.

During the Covid-19 pandemic we extended this support for the emergency services. Healthcare staff were trained and essential protective equipment such as masks was distributed.

Médecins du Monde has also helped to improve the quality of sexual and reproductive healthcare through the development of dedicated care and treatment protocols and training for healthcare staff around these crucial issues for the communities in Gaza.

Furthermore, additional activities were organised to contribute to the Covid-19 response within targeted communities, in particular awareness-raising about the risks of spreading the virus and the supply of 150,000 PCR tests to the Ministry of Health.