October 7, 2023 marked a before and after for Israelis, who, after the brutal attack by Hamas, realized that they were no longer safe in their own country. This attack, Described as the worst massacre against the Jewish people since the Holocaust, it led Israel to launch a war in retaliation.
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On October 8, 2023, this Israeli response dramatically impacted Palestinians, especially in the West Bank. Although it was already under control, the West Bank became another war front, with a total closure that aggravated the region’s chronic economic crisis and unleashed a critical humanitarian situation.
In the town of Tulkarem, located near the border with Israel and visible from Highway 6, the closure had a devastating impact. Of the area’s approximately 240,000 residents, at least 100,000 depended on their daily work in Israel, but since the blockade, they can no longer access those opportunities.
Yussef al-Haji Qassim, MBA from Al-Quds University in Jerusalem and director of the Arab Academy Trainers in Tulkarem, noted that since October 8 last year, thousands of Palestinians who had permits to cross the wall They were no longer able to do so due to movement restrictions imposed by Israel.
This academy, backed by the United States and other international organizations, offers a wide variety of courses, from cooking and hairdressing to English and photography.
The blockade severely affected Palestinian workers who depended on jobs in Israel, such as bricklayers, carpenters, laborers, plumbers and mechanics, impacting the economies of hundreds of thousands of families in the West Bank.
According to Qassimdesperation for money has led many Palestinians to attempt to cross illegally into Israelwhere salaries are better. However, these attempts expose them to the risk of being arrested or even losing their lives.
An example of this situation is the case of Samir Amar, a 49-year-old man who tried to cross a checkpoint near Shuweika, near Tulkarem. In an unclear incident, he was shot by an Israeli sniper on September 17.
Naila, 21, reported to ‘LA NACION’ the death of her father, Samir Amar, who was killed by an Israeli soldier while trying to cross into Israel to workalong with two other people.
“That day my dad went because we no longer had money, I was about to get married and he wanted to give me the best,” she said.
According to witnesses, the soldier did not shoot to hit him in the arm or leg, but directly to the heart. Naila claimed that the Israelis did not comment on the incident and accused that it is not just his father, but that the Israelis “kill all the Palestinians.”
Accompanied by her 18-year-old twin sisters, Lilian and Mina, and her 11-year-old younger brother Mohamed, Naila spoke on behalf of her family because, according to the rules of Islam, her mother cannot receive visits from strangers during four months and ten days, while they are in mourning.
Naila explained that, before October 7, his father had a permit to work in a frozen vegetable factory in Israel.
“They killed him just because he wanted to earn money to support his family,” he said, adding that, like his father, many people will continue to risk their lives due to the lack of work in the West Bank.
Although Tulkarem is only 60 kilometers from Tel Aviv, getting to the city is complicated. It is impossible to cross the wall that is visible from highway number 6 in Israeldue to the numerous closed checkpoints.
The journey involves detours through labyrinthine routes that pass through towns on stony hills and olive groves, surrounded by settler settlements. From Jerusalem, the trip can take at least two and a half hours.
Upon arriving in Tulkarem, the first thing you see are the ruins of the Nur Shams refugee camp, located at the entrance to the city. ANDThis field has been the target of various Israeli military operationsin search of Islamic Jihad or Hamas terrorists.
Israeli bulldozers and tanks destroyed most of the infrastructure, leaving a landscape of dirt, dust, fallen power poles, rubble, devastated homes and damaged vehicles. Last week, an airstrike by an Israeli F-16 bombed a cafeteria in the countryside, killing 18 people, including a Hamas leader, according to the Israeli military.
Nur Shams refugee camp It is considered too dangerous to visit, due to the constant presence of Israeli droneswarns Yussef al-Haji Qassim, who serves as a guide in the area.
According to the Palestinian National Authority, since October 7, 2023, 741 Palestinians, including 163 children, have been killed in military operations in the West Bank and East Jerusalem. Additionally, 6,250 people were injured and more than 11,000 were arrested.
Israel views the West Bank, which it calls Judea and Samaria, as one of several war fronts. The World Health Organization (WHO) reports more than 600 attacks on health infrastructure in the last year in this region.
Virtual classes
Naila, the daughter of the Palestinian who was murdered while trying to cross the wall to work in Israel, called off her marriage after the tragedy. His life had already gotten worse before that event, Since October 8 of last year he has not been able to visit his relatives. who live on the other side of the wall, in Israel. “Before we had permission, but now we don’t,” he says.
Neither Naila nor her sisters, who are university students, can attend in-person classes. She studies finance, while the twins study secretarial and journalism.
Tulkarem University has been closed for a year because professors, who come from other parts of the West Bank, such as Bethlehem, cannot arrive due to restrictions.
Classes are taught only via Zoom. Furthermore, the university is close to a checkpoint, and according to Naila, soldiers frequently fire tear gas at students.
The four brothers wear a medallion with their father’s photo around their necks, and their father’s image is also present in a photo placed at the entrance of their house. In the photo, he appears with the golden Al-Aqsa mosque in Jerusalem in the background, as is customary with the so-called “martyrs” of the Palestinian cause.
On a tour of Tulkarem, It is common to see banners on walls, posts and squares with the faces of dozens of “shahid”the martyrs who died for the Palestinian resistance. These posters pay tribute to those who lost their lives in the conflict.
The city’s sidewalks and roundabouts also show signs of devastation. Mansour Brek, owner of the historic Omar Brek coffee and confectionery chain, describes how Israeli forces raze infrastructure when they enter the area.
“A month ago, that roundabout had flowers, but when the Israelis come in, They break everything and we have to fix it again“accuses Brek.
His business, which also sells sweets and dried fruits, suffered damage to the windows when the Israeli bulldozers passed through the Shweke roundabout, located in front of his premises. Brek shows on his cell phone a video of the state of the roundabout after the incident.
The businessman, who traveled to Italy in 2019 to purchase products for his coffee chain, states that since October 8 has not been able to leave the West Bank due to the restrictions imposed.
Mansour highlights that since last October 8, Tulkarem has suffered a terrible economic crisis due to the blockade. He explains that before, the local economy was sustained because Israeli Arabs used to come to shop, since prices were lower, including coffee.
However, since the war began, they can no longer come, just like Tulkarem’s neighbors who worked in Israel. Besides, He points out that the lack of money has drastically reduced the number of customers in his candy store.
At Naila’s house, her aunt Haneen, sister of the late Samir, offers coffee and dates to visitors. Haneen spent 14 months in an Israeli prison five years ago for a Facebook comment in which he wrote “Not a good day” after Israeli forces killed Ahmed Jarrer, involved in the 2018 murder of a rabbi in a settlement. .
Naila protests against this situation and expresses her frustration, stating that they live under occupation and they cannot even express themselves freely on social networks.
Naila also describes how since October 8, 2023, the situation has worsened considerably, plunging the community into fear and uncertainty. He relates with despair that on Tuesday of last week, when Iran launched 200 missiles against Israel in retaliation for the assassinations of the leaders of Hamas, Ismail Haniyeh, and of Hezbollah, Hassan Nasrallah, in the West Bank they also experienced moments of terror.
“Only in Israel do they have shelters and safe rooms, but here we have nothing,” he laments. In the midst of this situation, The only answer they find is to pray to Allah and go up to the roofs to take photos of the missiles.
Elisabetta Piqué.
The Argentine Nation / GDA.
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*This content was written with the assistance of artificial intelligence, based on information from La Nación Argentina / GDA. It was reviewed by a journalist and an editor.
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