Beit Furik, Huwwara, Za’tara (Tapuah), Wed 16.9.09, Morning
Southern zone
Translation: Suzanne O.
Huwwara roadblock
9:10 a.m.
On arrival the soldiers would not allow us to park in the deserted car park, but after a few words they agreed and later on even wanted to know more about the activities of MachsomWatch.
The traffic flowed fairly well, there are between 5 – 10 cars on average at the roadblock, we counted about 5 minutes wait per car, more or less. At times 15 cars were in the queue.
The soldiers stopped a bus. The passengers were taken off. They were stood in 3 rows – facing the sun. Their documents were inspected. The bus was inspected; it was searched by dogs who also checked the baggage area twice. (According to Micky they use these opportunities to train the dogs). It took 17 minutes until the passengers were ordered back onto the bus.
Beit Furiq roadblock
10:00 a.m.
Traffic crosses freely.
10:15 a.m.
We went into the village. We went up to the town hall (local council?). Micky had a friendly conversation with the village mayor – complaints were raised about the road leading south, west, which they are not permitted to drive on. And also in this respect the fact that the army does not permit them access to their olive groves a few metres away on the top of the hill in full view of the town hall window, because of its proximity to the settlement of Itamar. They are forced to dry out the trees out of fear of the settlers and the army.
We saw a large billboard there (Micky took a photo) advertising the development plan for the village. Funds are raised abroad for the project.
Tapuach Junction (Za'atra)
11:10 a.m.
On the whole the traffic flows. Suspect vehicles are directed to park at the side.
We stayed about a quarter of an hour. A car was parked at the side, all the doors open. It was being searched by dogs.
The soldiers were not prepared to tell us what the problem was. They also did not permit us to speak to the driver – who was standing in the sun a few metres from the vehicle. They claimed it was dangerous. We feared that they would take it out on him if we tried to communicate with him.
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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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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