‘Israeli’ blockade denies ambulance entry in West Bank

• Palestinian medical crews faced critical delays while transporting an emergency patient from Azzun to nearby medical facilities.
• ‘Israeli’ forces kept metal gates closed at Azzun’s main entrances, blocking the primary route to Qalqilya.

Palestinian medical crews faced critical delays on Friday while attempting to transport an emergency medical patient from the town of Azzun, east of Qalqilya, as 'Israeli' forces continued to lock metal gates sealing off the town’s primary entrances.

Ambulance teams from the Palestinian Red Crescent Society (PRCS) struggled to transport the patient after ‘Israeli’ soldiers refused to open the heavy iron barrier erected at the main access road connecting Azzun to medical facilities in nearby Qalqilya.

Ambulance crews face difficulties transporting a patient from the town of Azzun, east of Qalqilya, as Israeli forces continue to block the town’s entrances with iron gates. The situation is repeated across the occupied West Bank, threatening patients’ lives and obstructing their… pic.twitter.com/VSlsP8NAEF

— Eye on Palestine (@EyeonPalestine) September 4, 2026

Movement restrictions

The life-threatening delay in Azzun reflects a pattern of movement restrictions enforced by ‘Israel’ across the occupied West Bank. 

Through a network of hundreds of permanent checkpoints, dirt mounds, and remote-controlled iron gates, 'Israeli' forces frequently isolate entire Palestinian towns and villages, effectively cutting off thousands of residents from emergency healthcare, schools, and essential services. 

Read more: ‘Israeli’ forces escalate raids, arrests across West Bank

According to humanitarian organizations including Doctors Without Borders (MSF) and the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), 'Israeli' soldiers routinely delay or deny passage to emergency medical vehicles, subjecting paramedics to military harassment, searches, and physical obstruction.

Medical rights advocates warn that the obstruction of emergency healthcare violates international humanitarian law under the Fourth Geneva Convention, which mandates the protection of civilian medical transports and unhindered access to emergency care during military occupation.