At-Tuwani – settlers attack and wound a Palestinian on his private land
After what happened there last night — the incident with an At-tuwani resident who was attacked by a settler from Havat Maon (Maon Farm), and who himself ended up being arrested and charged with attempted murder — we went to see and hear exactly what had happened.
Everything is quiet on the way until you reach the entrance to the village. An officer and a soldier at the checkpoint which they set up, want to know who we are and what the purpose of our coming is. Asking for our documents. Opening and closing the trunk.
When we left, the shift changed, and they again ask for documents and also photograph them.
In Nasser’s house there are three volunteers of the organization of churches, with their vests and a dove painted on them. One from Sweden, one from Norway and one from England. They are happy to meet us, and happy to hear about us firsthand.
I recorded Nasser but it is a very long and heavy tape and cannot be given here.
He told exactly what Rachel Afek heard from another friend.
“In the late afternoon, two settlers from Ma’on Farm came to the land of a farmer, a shepherd, a Palestinian from At-tuwani, equipped with iron tools, etc., and ordered him to leave. He told them that this was his land. A violent fight started between them, when one – the settler was armed with an iron tool, and the other – a resident of At-tuwani, empty-handed. Then more settlers arrived from the illegal farm, by car and on foot, and continued the fight with the shepherd who was grazing on his land. Then they started shooting in the air and apparently called in the army. Both parties involved were injured.
The army arrived. The wounded Palestinian was put on a Palestinian ambulance, but his wheels were punctured by the settlers, and the army dragged him to an Israeli ambulance that brought him to Soroka hospital. The settler who started the fight was also injured – and all the media were talking about him – attempted murder, no less!
Many armed forces arrived in the area, by car and on foot, entered the village. They went up on the roofs, fired sound and gas bombs towards the houses of the village, to such an extent that the gas entered every house and the entire area.
After that, they started entering houses to look for wanted persons, even though the direct confrontation had already ended at the beginning of the evening with two wounded.
The soldiers went from house to house, took out about 15 young people (Shabab) to a concentration place in the village and interrogated them. Two of the subjects were taken away and their whereabouts are still unknown. The whole thing continued until after two in the morning, when the residents found themselves with severe breathing problems, frightened and suffering children, and the inability to call for help.
The village was surrounded by the army all night, and until ten in the morning no one could enter or exit.
Nasser also says that the wounded Hafez, whose lands were invaded by the settlers, was also taken from Soroka Hospital for questioning. He repeats and mentions the redhead from the Havat Maon, who regularly makes their lives miserable, and is the one who started to fire yesterday.
There is tense silence now. In another video, Havat Maon can be seen on the hill above the village, and next to it, further on, the Maon settlement that is growing and growing, and its houses are almost touching the houses of the village of At-tuwani.
Khalet Al Daba’: There is an evacuation order on 29.9 for all residents of the village.
We will have to prepare for it.
A-Tuwani
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A-Tuwani
The locals came to a-Tuwani during the 20th century from the village of Yatta. They settled in abandoned ruins, utilizing the arable land, pastures for grazing sheep and the abundance of natural caves for habitation. The residents who settled in the caves came from families who could not purchase land for houses in the mother villages, as well as shepherds who did not have enough land to graze. They were joined by clan members who quarreled with other families in the mother locality.
Some of the residents today live in concrete buildings built above the caves. In the area of the village are several water cisterns and an ancient water well called 'Ein a-Tuwani. Local residents are forced to buy water in containers and transport them through many road blocks to the village. With the help of international organizations, an electrical system was installed in the village. In the late 90s of the 20tTh century, an elementary school was established in the serving several small villages in the area.
In 2004, MachsomWatch began visiting and reporting from the Khirbet Tuwani cave village, which suffers badly from the settlers of nearby outposts, and especially from the extremist Ma'on outpost. . The settlers contaminate cisterns, poison the flocks and uproot trees.Particularly notable is the harassment of children from the surrounding villages on their way to school in a-Tuwani, so much so that military escort of children is required to separate them from the attackers (this was arranged following an initiative of the organization's members). In the past year, the escort has been without the vital presence of overseas volunteers.
Near a-Tuwani there are several families who have returned to the caves due to the incessant demolitions of the civil administration (as there is a total construction ban in all of area C). Destroyed are not only residential and agricultural buildings, but also water pipes, machinery. Even water cisterns are clogged up. a-Tuwani residents have created an association for non-violent demolition protests, but in the past year the army’s harsh harassment and settler violence have intensified and escalated. The incident of the small generator confiscation, which left a young man paralyzed, is one of many examples - any legitimate protection of property rights leads to violence and even shootings by the army and the civil administration.
Updated April 2022
MuhammadFeb-24-2026South Hebron Hill, Beit Hagai: Paving an internal security road
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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
MuhammadFeb-24-2026South Hebron Hill, Beit Hagai: Paving an internal security road
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