Israeli Blockade of Madama Village Halts Schools, Healthcare and Olive Harvest

On October 11 the Israeli military blocked the four access points to Madama, a West Bank village south of Nablus, citing security concerns over farmers approaching land near an illegal settler outpost. The siege has immobilized more than 2,500 inhabitants, preventing commuting to jobs in Ramallah, attendance at schools and access to medical facilities. Residents attempted a temporary unpaved route, monitored by drones and later sealed off by soldiers using sound grenades and tear gas.

Simultaneously, bulldozers have leveled about 57 hectares of farmland and uprooted hundreds of olive trees during the crucial harvest season. The blockade has forced a village doctor to transport a heart-attack patient over earthen mounds, a journey that normally takes minutes but now requires hours. Teachers and a kindergarten principal have been compelled to escort children across barriers on foot, turning daily routines into hazardous operations. Although the northern entrance was briefly reopened, the other gates remain closed, and broader West Bank movement restrictions were announced following a Hebron attack.