Taybeh, a small hilltop town in the heart of the West Bank, is one of the oldest Christian communities in the world, now feeling under siege and fighting for its existence.
Dr. Firass Abiad, Lebanon's former minister of public health, states, 'It's very clear that there is targeting of healthcare personnel, first responders and healthcare facilities.' This highlights the ongoing concerns regarding the safety of medical workers in conflict zones.
While the world's attention is on the U.S.-Israel-Iran war, the Israeli military has placed the West Bank under a functional lockdown. Checkpoints in and out of most major cities are closed, and Palestinians have been left to look for other travel arrangements. Some residents who spoke with Truthout said they traveled for hours through village back roads in an attempt to reach their destinations.
We are in the so-called southern region of Hebron, which has been under a curfew since dawn, Nassar said. There is an intensive deployment of occupation forces including bulldozers and tracked armoured vehicles. We witnessed tracked armoured vehicles the last time we saw these in Hebron was during the second Intifada during [Israeli] Operation Defensive Shield, he said, noting the significance of the heavy equipment.
Last week, its security cabinet approved a move that makes it easier for settlers to buy land there, repealing decades-old laws and regulations. This week, the Israeli government went a step further. It has approved a proposal to reactivate land registration in the area for the first time since 1967. The move paves the way for Israel to gain ownership of vast swaths of land Palestinians hoped would have been part of their future state.
Al Jazeera Forum discusses the regional impact of Israel's genocidal war against the Palestinian people in Gaza. Four months into the Gaza ceasefire, Palestinians in the devastated territory are coming to terms with the post-war situation. At this year's edition of the Al Jazeera Forum in Doha, delegates are focusing on the power shifts created by Israel's genocide. A new committee of technocrats is expected to be in charge of Gaza's governance.