Beit Furik, Huwwara, Ma’ale Efrayim, Za’tara (Tapuah), Sat 11.6.11, Morning
Translator: Ilil N.B.
9:00 We’d been asked to get a power of attorney signature from A. in Tulkarem. We drove to meet him at a checkpoint north of Irtah. This is a checkpoint for entering cars only, not for pedestrians or exiting cars. We weren’t familiar with this checkpoint; in my opinion, our shifts don’t get here. There’s a police car present, and a policeman in black uniform is looking at passing cars and (randomly?) stopping some of them for examination. Thank God I’m not a policewoman.
Two soldiers stand behind a concrete barrier. We approach them and ask to pass by foot in order to get A.’s signature, who is standing beyond the fence, 20 metres from us. One of the soldiers immediately says no. Forbidden. The law. Instructions. This is how it is. Go to Jubara.
But he’s here, we say, only a few steps from us, he’ll sign the paper and we’ll go…
The soldier wasn’t persuaded. He grew even stiffer.
But the second soldier took the initiative to call and get permission for us to cross, get the signature, and return. We shook hands and our hearts swelled, filled once again with hope.
11:45 Za’tara (Tapuah) Checkpoint
Three soldiers stand here between concrete barriers. There’s also a police car. We didn’t witness any delays of cars.
12:45 Huwwara Checkpoint
Closed! A sign says “Road closed” and traffic is redirected to the right, towards ‘Awarta. We drive to ‘Awarta.
The checkpoint at ‘Awarta is open! For over a year, the yellow metal arm here has always been closed. But now, movement is lively. Turns out there’s construction at the usual road going from Nablus to Huwwara. We couldn’t resist and went through the checkpoint, seeing a lot of movement. We continued to Beit Furic.
13:00 Beit Furik Checkpoint
A jeep stands at the checkpoint, and soldiers are checking papers and the trunks of cars going into Nablus. We left without being examined.
13:30 Za’tara (Tapuah) Checkpoint
A soldier stands at the tower. The road is clear, and movement is lively.
13:45 Ma’ale Efrayim Checkpoint
There are no soldiers at the checkpoint.
14:15 Hamra Checkpoint
Four cars arriving from the West Bank stand by as their occupants are taken to the examination room. Five soldiers are present at the checkpoint. Movement in both directions goes as expected: cars going into the West Bank aren’t examined, but merely wait for a soldier’s raised arm as a signal to pass. But cars going into the Jordan Valley are meticulously examined, including permits/licenses, doors, and passengers.
14:15 Hamra Checkpoint (again)
We’d heard that soldiers here were delaying cars leaving the West Bank, and that they were letting cars go through to be examined only once at least three cars were present. So we returned to check this out. We didn’t see it happening. We saw soldiers letting cars pass in both directions without any particular delays.
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)
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Shoshi AnbarMay-18-2025Huwara: The old houses in Area C
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Ma'ale Efrayim
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Ma'ale Efrayim On the road connecting Route 90 (the Jordan Valley road) to the Allon 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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