Beit Furik, Huwwara, Za’tara (Tapuah), Wed 21.10.09, Afternoon
Translation: Aliyah S.
14:50 – Za'tara Junction:
From west to east the checkpoint has disappeared; there are no soldiers.
The north-south checkpoint is working as usual; about 20 vehicles are in line.
14:56 – Huwwara checkpoint:
About 13 vehicles are waiting in the lane out of Nablus. They are checked and then go through.
Two vehicles are being held up at the side. After a minute one drives away, the second, a taxi, is still standing there. There is a lot of of baggage on the roof of the taxi. It seems that the soldiers are stopping each vehicle and opening the doors. Now we see that the vehicles going into Nablus are also being checked and a few are also being held at the side.
One small truck that wanted to go into the city was stopped and made to turn around and go back the way it came; he wasn't allowed to go into Nablus and it isn't clear why.
The line of cars going out of Nablus grew longer. Elinor called the DCO in order to understand the reason for the long line, the checking and the cars waiting on the side, even though we know the reason from the reports of the morning observers. At the DCO office they told her they would look into it and call her back. We didn't put much hope in that.
A soldier walked up to us and asked what we were doing. Elinor showed him her tag and said "Machsom Watch". He answered, "sabbaba" and walked away. The checking of cars going into Nablus seemed to be random.
A peddler approached us asking for clothes. While he was talking to Aliyah the soldier told him that he was supposed to be on the other side. The Palestinian explained that he only came to say hello to us. The soldier said OK but he should go to the other side; the soldier walked in that direction and the peddler followed him.
The line going out of the city continued to be rather long but we could see that the cars were going through within a reasonable amount of time, a few minutes.
15:30 – Beit Furik checkpoint:
Three vehicles were coming from Nablus and one was going into the city. The cars stopped to be checked cursorily. More cars arrived from Nablus and we see that the checking is random.
On our way back from Beit Furik, by Awarta, we see an army truck with a yellow metal gate on it. Hamdan thinks there is a path nearby which the army wants to close.
16:00 – Za'tara junction:
At least 30 vehicles were in line from Nablus. One car is being held on the side; we're not sure why.
Beit Furik checkpoint
See all reports for this place-
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)
-
Huwwara
See all reports for this place-
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)
.
Shoshi AnbarMay-18-2025Huwara: The old houses in Area C
-
Za'tara (Tapuah)
See all reports for this place-
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
-