Palestin : When a young woman was admitted to Al Hussein hospital with a fractured spine and bruises on her body and face, doctors began to treat yet another case of traumatic injury.
Everyone here was used to young patients arriving with devastating wounds.
The hospital is located close to the Palestinian city of Bethlehem, whose streets lead past packed suburban refugee camps to Israeli army checkpoints and the foreboding separation barrier – all frequent flashpoints for violence.
But Israa Ghrayeb’s story was different.
It would unravel into tragedy, protest and much soul searching over the protection of women from gender-based violence in Palestinian society.
“It’s going to be a very important turning point and we will always remember Israa Ghrayeb,” says Randa Siniora, who runs the Palestinian Women’s Center for Legal Aid and Counselling.
Less than a fortnight after her initial admission on 10 August, Israa was brought to hospital again but this time the doctors could do nothing. She was dead.
