QUARANTINE - DAY 21 - 26th March 2020

The Palestinian Authority is ordering all Palestinian workers to return to the West Bank, as it has become clear that they are not being properly looked after. In recent days, there have been cases of workers who are displaying covid-19 symptoms being dumped by Israeli authorities at checkpoints. A video on social media shows one such man being dumped by the side of the road who is visibly ill. These workers are being asked to return home and self-isolate for at least two weeks. 

A young man explains how he feels about quarantine:


My name is Mahmoud Najajreh. I am an 18 year old student and resident of the city of Bethlehem, and live with my mother. I study in Bethlehem High School for Boys. On a normal day in the past, before the quarantine, I would wake up early in the mornings and prepare myself to go to school and meet my fellow classmates on the way to or in school.

But since the spread of the covid-19 virus, we have been locked in our houses doing nothing and talking to no one, hearing false news about how many people have the virus on social media. And seriously, it has been the best 19 days of my life! No pressure from school, no getting tired of walking the 2km distance to and from school. During the day I spend most of my time studying, because this year is Tawjihi (Palestinian final school exams). I used to play a lot of video games, especially on playstation, but now I can't because I have to focus on work for Tawjihi. Now, I only play video games and listen to music when I am not studying.

The most important thing is that people have started to pay more attention  to their health, and use sterilisers more. I think covid-19 is more of a blessing than a curse - forget the number of deaths for now, and focus on how people have developed. I think that when this crisis ends, the people of Palestine will learn from their mistakes and build a new system that contains everything instead of making decisions that won't work.

Stay safe people and stay at home.

Photo courtesy of Mohamed Abu Haniyeh

https://www.bethlehem-town.com/