Eyewitness: Lockdown in Bethlehem

Empty Manger Square © FHL

Source: UNRWA

It has been one month since the city of Bethlehem was shut down due to the coronavirus (COVID-19) outbreak in the city and its residents were put on lockdown, including thousands of Palestine refugees. The lockdown could not have come at a worse time for the residents of Bethlehem, who largely depend on tourism for their livelihoods. In the matter of a day, thousands of people were unemployed, not knowing where their next paycheck was going to come from or how long it would take before things returned to normal. Entire communities, like the Aida Refugee Camp, immediately felt the impact of the shutdown as their workforce were suddenly at home, schools were cancelled, and the bustling streets of the camp fell silent.

For people like 56-year-old Abdulrahman Abu Srour, one of the first things that came to his mind when he heard the news of the outbreak was his health. Like many of the older residents of Aida, Abu Srour has a number of pre-existing health conditions like diabetes and high blood pressure. "We were seeing on the news that the virus was severely impacting people with chronic illnesses, like myself, so this was very worrying," Abu Srour said.

But when he saw a post on Facebook from Ibrahim Abu Srour, the Community and Camp Services Officer (CCSO) in Aida, offering to pick up people's prescriptions from the UNRWA health center in Bethlehem and bring them back to the camp, Abu Srour said his spirits were lifted. "It was such a relief that Ibrahim was going out of his way to do this for people like myself, so that we don't have to go out to the city and potentially expose ourselves to the virus," Abu Srour said, adding that the decision of UNRWA to give beneficiaries two-month prescriptions as opposed to one has also "been a huge help."

With the help of UNRWA and its staff, as well as local community health workers who provide weekly at-home checkups, Abu Srour has been able to put his mind at ease despite the fears surrounding the growing COVID-19 pandemic. "Even though everyone is stuck at home, and trying to distance themselves from one another, this community is still taking care of people like me, and I am very grateful," he said.

To read on see: www.unrwa.org/newsroom/features/existential-fears-hope-and-solidarity-coping-under-30-days-quarantine-aida-camp