Nablus, West Bank

Shireen Nazzal, MSF psychological counselor

Life in Palestine, even before, it’s always had suffering.

But honestly, before October 7, it was lighter.

There weren’t so many checkpoints, not so many gates.

But after October 7, everything closed down.

Life became a prison.

Everyone is imprisoned in their own area.



On-screen text:

Throughout the West Bank, movement restrictions imposed by the Israeli military have dramatic daily consequences for Palestinians.



Shorouq Al-Madmooj, MSF social worker

We usually agree with the patients

that we’ll inform them the moment we cross the checkpoint.

We stay in touch via WhatsApp.

You feel they’re so anxious,

while they are coming for a session.

They are wondering if any trouble happened in Nablus.

And they keep sending me “are you there or not, should I leave or not yet ?”

On-screen text:

Shorouq and Shireen have been working with MSF for about 20 years. Every day, they travel across the norther West Bank to help people who need psychological support.

I see people in even greater need of psychological support.
Today, you feel that the symptoms are more complex,
and the stories themselves are more complicated.
There’s an overlap between social violence and political violence.



Shireen

Yes, after October 7, everyone’s lives changed.
Even for us, as healthcare providers—our lives changed.
People became afraid to move from place to place.
There are gates, security checkpoints,
and harassment happening everywhere—
settlers attacking people on the roads,
either early in the morning or late in the day.
For example, people living next to a settlement.
Now, when they want to leave their homes,
they can’t leave them empty,
someone must stay inside the house.




Shorouq

Everything is tangled together,
personal struggles... it is tangled.
People’s lives have become so complicated.
It’s not easy.
You really have to unravel things carefully to even begin to help.


At night, there’s the sound of bombs, explosions…
Most of the bombs and missiles happen at night.
I wish there could really be a quiet night,
a night where you just sleep whenever you want,
without being disturbed,
without having to monitor your daughter if she’s outside.
So fear and anxiety...
They accompany us throughout our lives.

On-screen text :

Since early 2024, Israeli military operations have displaced nearly 32,000 people in the north of the West Bank. Attacks by the army and settlers and the destruction of homes are intensifying as part of an ethnic cleansing operation that is fragmenting Palestinian territory and destroying any prospects for the future of its inhabitants.