Access to healthcare is seriously compromised in H2, the mental and physical health of the Palestinian population is at risk and deteriorating

Since Israel’s war on the people of Gaza, restrictions by Israeli forces have drastically increased in the West Bank, including in Hebron. In December 2023, citing security concerns, Israeli authorities forced MSF teams to suspend activities for over five months in the Jaber neighbourhood, inside H2. As an alternative, MSF teams opened a mobile clinic close to the Jaber neighbourhood outside the checkpoint and in Tel Rumeida, accessible to people who can exit H2 but only a few people could access it.

"Although we are now able to provide care in the MSF clinic in Jaber neighbourhood, access remains challenging as our staff can be searched and delayed at the checkpoints to enter the H2 area,” says MSF project coordinator Chloe Janssen. “Access to medical care should never be arbitrarily denied, impeded or blocked.”

MSF frequently faces interruptions to their mobile clinic services, being barred from entering the area or encountering movement restrictions during Israeli public holidays. Normally, MSF provides mobile clinics in H2 twice per week, but from September to November 2024, MSF was forced to cancel these clinics 7 out of 26 times. MSF mobile clinics, twice a week treat 60 to 70 patients, offering physical care alongside mental health support to help residents cope with the ongoing trauma of their circumstances.

These disruptions to care have profound effects on the community, cutting off access to vital healthcare services. Due to the prolonged restrictions, violence, harassment, and incitement of fear, MSF teams are seeing a dramatic decline in children´s mental health. MSF psychologists are seeing children who are reporting symptoms of trauma, including hyperactivity, bed-wetting, nightmares and academic struggle.

MSF calls on the Israeli forces to stop implementing restrictive measures that impede the ability of Palestinians to access basic services, including medical care. Israel must take all feasible measures to ensure that medical care remains unobstructed and accessible. Access to medical care must never be arbitrarily denied, impeded or blocked.

The H2 area of Hebron, one of the most restricted areas in the West Bank, comprises about 20 percent of the city and is emblematic of the challenges faced by Palestinians living under Israeli control. Home to approximately 7,000 Palestinians and several hundred Israeli settlers (the only place in the West Bank where Israeli settlers have settled within a Palestinian city), this neighbourhood is ruled by strict movement regulations, systemic closures, and continuous violence.

Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) teams have been providing primary healthcare and mental health support in two clinics to Palestinians whose access to healthcare has been directly obstructed.

“Palestine isn’t a case of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) because the trauma never ends. Here, we’re talking about continuous and complex trauma. The entire population is affected.” says Lucia Uscategui, MSF’s Mental Health Activity Manager. “Even if the conflict and occupation ended tomorrow, the consequences would linger for years. But our work is about showing people they are not alone—that there is still some hope, even in the darkest times.”