Huwwara, Za’tara (Tapuah), Tue 16.10.07, Afternoon
14:30- After reading Dana's email on the incident in Marda village near Ariel, we entered the village. The IDF took over the roof of one of the houses and hung the Israeli flag (soldier: "so that they know we are here"), saying that stones had been thrown on the main road and the house (which is rather far from the road) is suppose to be their observation point. Those who protested were repressed, a woman got hit, there was use of plastic bullets and people were injured. The officer that explained to us what had happened couldn’t' understand why would someone refuse to accommodate IDF soldiers on the roof of his home, while they disturb his daily life. There were restrictions over the Red Crescent volunteers who had left their ambulance there. Representatives of Rabbis from Human Rights were there (Asherman and others) and a reporter from the Jerusalem Post. The village is under a curfew.
15:20- Za'atara Junction- Crowded. About thirty vehicles were waiting from the south.
15:30- Another checkpoint was placed at the north entrance to Huwwara. Ten cars were waiting.
15:35- Huwwara Checkpoint- The waiting time was of about an hour. There was much tension yelling in the regular lane. At humanitarian lane was a long and crowded line, one woman fainted and after 15 minutes an ambulance arrived and took her. A mother and her son (about 17) were detained for about two and a half hours. The mother was the daughter of a Jewish woman from Tiberias. The family had wandered through several cities: Tibee, Jerusalem, Tul Karem and Al Eizariya. Their IDs were issued in Gaza– they had left the strip about twelve years ago- they were not issued again for bureaucratic reasons and they often get detained. The woman has a Pacemaker. The officer released them at 16:30 after Raheli's pleas.
At 15:50– a student that was trying to exit through the entrance facilities was caught. The young man was sent to the cell. He was relased at 17:15. We could find some comfort from the reshuffle at the checkpoint: deputy commander N. is replacing the officer who's-name-must-not-be mentioned, after having left, probably forever.
17:30- We left.
17:35– about ten cars were waiting at the renewed checkpoint at the entrance to Huwwara.
Huwwara
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The Huwwara checkpoint is an internal checkpoint south of the city of Nablus, at the intersection of Roads 60 and 5077 (between the settlements of Bracha and Itamar). This checkpoint was one of the four permanent checkpoints that closed on Nablus (Beit Furik and Awarta checkpoints to the east and the Beit Iba checkpoint to the west). It was a pedestrian-only barrier. As MachsomWatch volunteers, we watched therre since 2001 two shifts a day - morning and noon, the thousands of Palestinians leaving Nablus and waiting for hours in queues to reach anywhere else in the West Bank, from the other side of the checkpoint the destination could only be reached by public transport. In early June 2009, as part of the easing of Palestinian traffic in the West Bank, the checkpoint was opened to vehicular traffic. The passage was free, with occasional military presence in the guard tower. Also, there were vehicle inspections from time to time. Since the massacre on 7.10.2023, the checkpoint has been closed to Palestinians.
On February 26, 2023, about 400 settlers attacked the town's residents for 5 hours and set fire to property, such as houses and cars. Disturbances occurred in response to a shooting of two Jewish residents of Har Bracha by a Palestinian Terrorist. The soldiers stationed in the town did not prevent the arson and rescued Palestinian families from their homes only after they were set on fire. No one was punished and Finance Minister Smotrich stated that "the State of Israel should wipe out Hawara." Left and center organizations organized solidarity demonstrations and support actions for the residents of Hawara.Hawara continued to be in the headlines in all the months that followed: more pogroms by the settlers, attacks by Palestinians and a massive presence of the army in the town. It amounted to a de facto curfew of commerce and life in the center of the city. On October 5, 2023, MK Zvi established a Sukkah in the center of Hawara and hundreds of settlers backed the army blocked the main road and held prayers in the heart of the town all night and the next day. On Saturday, October 7, 23 The "Swords of Iron" war began with an attack by Hamas on settlements surrounding Gaza in the face of a poor presence of the IDF. Much criticism has been made of the withdrawal of military forces from the area surrounding Gaza and their placement in the West Bank, and in the Hawara and Samaria region in particular, as a shield for the settlers who were taking over and rioting.
On November 12, 2023, the first section of the Hawara bypass road intended for Israeli traffic only was opened. In this way, the settlers can bypass the road that goes through the center of Hawara, which is the main artery for traffic from the Nablus area to Ramallah and the south of the West Bank. For the construction of the road, the Civil Administration expropriated 406 dunams of private land belonging to Palestinians from the nearby villages. The settlers are not satisfied with this at the moment, and demand to also travel through Hawara itself in order to demonstrate presence and control.(updated November 2023)
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Shoshi AnbarMay-18-2025Huwara: The old houses in Area C
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Za'tara (Tapuah)
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Za'tara (Tapuah) Za'tara is an internal checkpoint in the heart of the West Bank, at the intersection of Road 60 and Road 505 (Trans-Samaria), east of the Tapuah settlement. This checkpoint is the "border" marked by the IDF between the north and south of the West Bank, in accordance with the policy of separation between the two parts of the West Bank that has been in place since December 2005. At the Za'tara checkpoint, there are separate routes for Israelis and Palestinians. In the route for Israelis, there are no inspections and the route for Palestinians inspects. The queue lengthens and shortens suits. The checkpoint is open 24 hours a day. The checkpoint is partially staffed and the people who pass through it are checked at random.
Shoshi AnbarSep-27-2023Za'atra (Tapuah Intersection). Signs
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