Israel to return firefighters aid for Palestine back to the UK

A fire engine donated by Scottish firefighters to their Palestinian counterparts in the West Bank may be sent back to the United Kingdom after being held by Israeli authorities for more than 15 months, reported Middle East Eye via AFP , The Guardian and other agencies on 24 October.

The fire engine was refurbished in the UK, including conversion for right‐hand drive and shipped via the port at Ashdod in July 2024. It was intended for use by Nablus municipality firefighters and included first‐aid equipment, medical supplies, firefighting gear and supplies for a local children’s football team.

However, Israeli customs and border authorities did not clear the engine for onward transfer into the occupied Palestinian territories. The impoundment has led to accrual of port fees amounting to approximately £16,000, leaving the Nablus municipality facing a significant financial burden.

Jim Malone, a veteran Dundee firefighter who coordinated the project, told The Guardian, the situation was “heartbreaking.” He said the effort, which involved months of fundraising and volunteer work, was meant to show solidarity with Palestinian emergency services that often operate under severe equipment shortages. “It’s sitting in a port doing nothing,” he said. “We just wanted to help our colleagues do their job safely.”

Firefighters, who have been campaigning for the fire engine to pass through Israeli customs, are now speaking to the UK government about repatriating it to avoid the governorate paying exorbitant fees, according to the report.

Israeli authorities have said they have impounded the vehicle because the fire engine is a right-hand drive and they require it to be left-hand drive in the occupied West Bank.

However according to Middle East Eye, the firefighters say they previously sent a fire engine to the West Bank in 2011, which was also impounded for months and then retrofitted to be left-hand drive. It was later deployed for firefighting duties, and there is an agreement to do the same this time round though Israeli authorities remain unmoved.

The Fire Brigade Union (FBU) have subsequently made concerted efforts to have the fire engine released. They presented it as an early day motion in UK Parliament in October (where it garnered 35 signatures), took a letter to the Israeli ambassador to the UK in November and also protested outside the Israeli embassy in London.

In an article in Firefighters magazine after the protest, Fire Brigades Union general secretary Matt Wrack, said: “Firefighters in Palestine are working to save lives in horrifying conditions. As humanitarians, we cannot stand by while lives are being lost.

“It is appalling that life-saving equipment donated by our members is being held by Israeli customs while Palestinian firefighters are in desperate need of resources”.

In February, the firefighters set up a petition that garnered more than 14,450 signatures.

According to Middle East Eye, representatives of the Fire Brigades Union (FBU) have engaged with the UK government and Scottish government officials to discuss repatriation of the engine, as an alternative to the Palestinian municipality being left with excessive costs and a non-operational asset.

 The UK Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office (FCDO) said it was aware of the case and that it “continues to call on Israel to increase humanitarian and commercial access into the Palestinian territories by ensuring all aid crossings are fully operational”.

The Middle East Eye reported that the Nablus municipality has recorded challenges in obtaining equipment and relief vehicles due to border and customs restrictions while firefighters in the occupied territories face a chronic shortage of PPE.

Middle East Eye via AFP, The Guardian and other agencies, Maghrebi.org