Awarta, Beit Furik, Huwwara, Za’tara (Tapuah), Thu 12.6.08, Morning
Translation: Tal H.
06:58 – entry way to Marda village, open, to Zeita village – blocked.
07:07 – Tapuach/Za'tara Junction CP –
About 10 vehicles coming from Huwwara. Soldiers process them quickly. The reservist crew manning the checkpoint are in the car park and talk with us. They say it's their last day for this tour of duty, and that the last day is always tense.
Near the Menorah in the central roundabout stands an army jeep, four soldiers next to it.
A taxi driver arrives, approaches the soldier standing with us and complains that those soldiers confiscated his ID and sent him to wait at the car park claiming he was standing where he shouldn't have. He says he always stops there and doesn't understand what the problem is. Meanwhile another taxi driver joined and the soldier went over to look into the matter. Two minutes later both taxi drivers were released and the jeep left. To our questions about the goings-on, the soldiers reluctantly replied that there was an event last night that raised the alarm of a kidnapping, and following that the soldiers are trying to prevent contact between settlers and Palestinians, that' why the taxi drivers were prevented from standing next to the full settlers' hitchhikers' post. But the soldiers would not go into details about the event. The swift vehicle inspection did not indicate any kind of urgent waning…
07:45 – Huwwara
The taxi park is nearly full. Less than 10 pedestrians waiting to exit Nablus, passing swiftly. Here the CP commander who already knows us tells us what happened last night: two settlers entered a village close to Huwwara, there was a report of a kidnapping that made all the army and police forces in the area jump-start, and in the morning (according to the CP commander) they learned this was a settlers' practical joke, and routine was resumed.
08:25 – during our shift, the pedestrian line shortened. One Palestinian was detained and sent to the cubicle (it was the commander who brought this to our attention, knowing we check this as soon as we arrive). We heard from the detainee that he lives in Nablus and works in a clothes shop in Ramallah, and because his ID appears on the lists he is detained every day, and every day he is released after 15 minutes to two hours.
08:35 – the detainee is released.
09:00 – on our way to leave, a Palestinian approached us for help and shows us documents indicating that his two-year old daughter is ill and needs medical care. He said he was told to turn to the Peres Peace Center. We referred him to Zacharia who would know how to guide him further.
09:10 – Awarta – no vehicles present.
09:20 – Beit Furik CP – all's quiet. Few pedestrians, an occasional vehicle arrives and is allowed through immediately. The CP commander resents our being there.
10:07 – Za'tara/Tapuach Junction CP – 30 vehicles waiting in line coming from Nablus.
10:12 – Marda and Zeita same as before.
10:30 – Shaar Shomron crossing – 2 Palestinians sitting on the side of the checkpoint, apparently 'illegals' who were caught.
'Awarta
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Awarta, an internal checkpoint in the heart of the West Bank, is located east of the Hawara checkpoint, at the junction of Roads 555 (which was forbidden for Palestinian traffic in this area) and the entrance road to Nablus. It was one of the four checkpoints that surrounded Nablus until 2009. We used to watch it at Huwwara shifts because it was the only one where goods could be transferred to and from Nablus, using the back-to-back method. It was operated by the army, from 06:00 to 20:00. Until 2009.
Ronit Dahan-RamatiJun-12-2008Awarta: a long line of cars
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Beit Furik checkpoint
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One of the three internal checkpoints that closed on the city of Nablus - Beit Furik to the east, Hawara to the south, Beit Iba to the west. The checkpoint is located at the junction of Roads 557 (an apartheid road that was forbidden for Palestinians), leading to the Itamar and Alon Morea settlements and Road 5487. The checkpoint was established in 2001 for pedestrians and vehicles; The opening hours were short and the transition was slow and very problematic.Allegedly, the checkpoint is intended to monitor the movement to and from Nablus of the residents of Beit Furik and Beit Dajan, being the only opening outside their villages. Since May 2009 the checkpoint is open 24 hours a day, the military presence is limited, vehicles can pass through it without inspections, except for random inspections. (Updated April 2010)
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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)
.Fathiya AkfaJun-12-2008Huwara: traffic jam on the main road
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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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