South Hebron Hills, Sun 19.2.12, Morning
Translator: Charles K.
We started early; it was raining and very cold. We saw very few laborers at the Sansana checkpoint. The parking lot on the Palestinian side was almost completely deserted. After a few days of rain and snow in the Hebron area, it’s obvious that no one will be working in construction and in the fields on a day like this. The fruit and vegetable sellers, fewer than usual, huddle together out of the rain under a canopy at the side of the checkpoint and offer us coffee.
We continued on Highway 60. We were “kings of the road,” alone on the highway. The rain fell harder, turned into hail and then heavy snow as we approached Kiryat Arba. We never reached Hebron because the road grew slippery and dangerous. The car began showing signs it was in trouble so we turned around and drove to Be’ersheva. Well, there’s always tomorrow, the day after tomorrow, next week, and on and on. The occupation isn’t going anywhere.
South Hebron Hills
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South Hebron Hills
South Hebron Hills is a large area in the West Bank's southern part.
Yatta is a major city in this area: right in the border zone between the fertile region of Hebron and its surroundings and the desert of the Hebron Hills. Yatta has about 64,000 inhabitants.
The surrounding villages are called Masafer Yatta (Yatta's daughter villages). Their inhabitants subsist on livestock and agriculture. Agriculture is possible only in small plots, especially near streams. Most of the area consists of rocky terraces.Since the beginning of the 1980s, many settlements have been established on the agricultural land cultivated by the Palestinians in the South Hebron Hills region: Carmel, Maon, Susia, Masadot Yehuda, Othniel, and more. Since the settlements were established and Palestinians cultivation areas have been reduced; the residents of the South Hebron Hills have been suffering from harassment by the settlers. Attempts to evict and demolish houses have continued, along with withholding water and electricity. The military and police usually refrain from intervening in violent incidents between settlers and Palestinians do not enforce the law when it comes to the investigation of extensive violent Jewish settlers. The harassment in the South Hebron Hills includes attacking and attempting to burn residential tents, harassing dogs, harming herds, and preventing access to pastures.
There are several checkpoints in the South Hebron Hills, on Routes 317 and 60. In most of them, no military presence is apparent, but rather an array of pillboxes monitor the villages. Roadblocks are frequently set up according to the settlers and the army's needs. These are located at the Zif Junction, the Dura-al Fawwar crossing, and the Sheep Junction at the southern entrance to Hebron.
Updated April 2022
Muhammad D.Oct-29-2026Michal in Shaab Al-Butum with Ishaq Jabarin
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