​Although the Palestinian authorities followed a set of global standards and procedures to tackle the pandemic, they had to manoeuvre within severe constraints: weak health infrastructure, a fragile financial situation for the Palestinian Authority (PA), and the political ramifications of the Israeli military occupation – particularly the imminent threat of annexation of major parts of the West Bank. The COVID-19 response yielded a strengthening in the perceived legitimacy and popularity of the Palestinian government, but this is very likely to be short-lived.