Hebron:A 10-day Israeli military lockdown in Hebron has severely disrupted access to healthcare and resulted in the forced displacement of thousands of Palestinians, as reported by the international aid agency Doctors Without Borders (MSF).
According to Jordan News Agency, the lockdown, which took place from late October into early November, involved military raids, forced evictions, arrests, and home demolitions across the occupied West Bank district. The presence of heavy checkpoints and travel bans hindered medical personnel from reaching patients and prevented residents from accessing medical clinics.
The situation forced MSF to suspend its mobile medical units and in-person mental health counseling temporarily. Between October 25 and 29, at least 380 patients across five rural locations outside Hebron were deprived of basic healthcare services, including access to medications for chronic diseases and psychiatric support.
Supply-chain blockages have exacerbated existing shortages throughout the regional health network, affecting high-risk patients, such as those undergoing cancer treatments, who are left without reliable care. MSF's Hebron Project Coordinator, Federica Venturi, expressed concern about the movement restrictions, urging Israeli authorities to cease what MSF describes as collective punishment and ethnic cleansing.
Local municipal officials estimate that 3,300 residents were displaced, with some families given less than an hour's notice to evacuate their homes, leaving with minimal belongings to areas lacking safe shelter. The lockdown also coincided with intensified settler attacks on farmers during the annual olive harvest and the continued growth of unauthorized outposts across the territory.
Although MSF has resumed its mobile clinic operations, the organization warns that ongoing systemic restrictions continue to endanger vulnerable populations in the region.