Palestinian in the West Bank are facing a situation that can be characterised as a double-barrelled occupation. On the one hand there are the Israeli military forces - omnipresent throughout and around the West Bank - and on the other there is the Palestinian Authority, which overtly cooperates with Israel and actively suppresses internal political opposition but continues to be supported by international donors such as the EU and the US. Improving people's security in such an intricate situation of occupation, in which state-actors play a particularly contested role, asks for a specific approach that looks beyond the state as the traditional provider of security. Such an acknowledgement of individual or human security prevailing over state security raises an important question: if a certain state cannot or does not want to provide security to its citizens, who, then, must bear this responsibility? Even though a new concept like human security pays lip service to a more individual-oriented approach to providing security, this study argues that it remains strongly rooted in traditional strands of (international) security theories. Essentially, it still revolves around a top-down approach, in which security mostly comes "from above" and states are responsible for it. In case states fail in this respect, they should either be forced into doing so, through sanctions or a (military) intervention, or supported with, for example, the supply of (military) personnel, funds or expertise. This study presents a critical approach to human security that emphasises the agency of individuals, and how people cooperate in varying security communities, when faced by armed conflict. A key element in this approach is the use of a new conceptual tool to analyse conflict situations: the security fabric. The principal question is whether such an analysis of the security fabric in the West Bank can provide valuable insights in the characteristics of the various actors who try to provide human security, in what ways they do this, how they interact, and how the context of the Israeli occupation influences the dynamics between them. The main argument put forward is that human security from below - the initiatives that are instigated by local security communities - is not only an integral part of the security fabric but its very foundation. This study emphasises that the success of future attempts to improve the security of people in armed conflicts - be they civil wars, occupations, or other - depends on the dynamics between actors on different levels. Foreign assistance should always be tailored to the needs of the local population and, importantly, be complementary to local initiatives to improve security, because security asks for a shared commitment and vision of everyone involved.