23 June, Jerusalem – As international focus shifts to the escalating conflict between Israel and Iran, Israeli forces have ramped up their activities in the West Bank. Increased military operations in Jenin, Nablus, and Tulkarem governorates, along with additional troop deployments, have led to heightened restrictions on Palestinians. Médecins sans Frontières (MSF) warns that these actions exacerbate the already dire situation for Palestinians in the West Bank, who face significant barriers to accessing healthcare and essential services, especially since October 2023. MSF urges an immediate halt to measures that contribute to forced displacement and a system of annexation, including prolonged military presence, movement restrictions, demolitions, excessive use of force, and denial of basic services.
“On June 13 the Israeli forces raided my village in Tulkarem, they took over two residential buildings and turned them into military barracks, displacing the people who were living there. Since then, they have been patrolling the village regularly, conducting investigations, interrogations, arrests, searches, and detentions.” Karim*, MSF staff member
On 13 June, the day the escalations started, the Israeli authorities blocked all major Israeli checkpoints and road gates entrances to Hebron for four days. This forced people seeking medical care to cross between areas on foot, forcing critically ill people to walk long distances, taking the risk of being shot at, or being prevented from crossing at all.
Military operations and violent raids by the Israeli army have been going on for years in the West Bank. 2022 saw a then–record number of Palestinian deaths due to violence by Israeli forces or settlers. Since October 2023, Israeli forces have increased the number of coercive measures and use of extreme physical violence against Palestinians in the occupied West Bank, including severe movement restrictions, military raids, and systemic barriers to essential services.
In January 2025, the Israeli forces began the ‘Iron Wall’ military operation in the northern West Bank, which is still ongoing. Violently emptying well–established camps and preventing any return, more than 42,000 people have been forcibly displaced and left without stable homes and with limited access to food, water, and medical care.
*name changed.
