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Dura-Al Fawwar Junction, Hakvasim (sheep) Junction, South Hebron Hills

Observers: Ariela (reporing) and Muhammad; Translator: Natanya
Jun-30-2020
| Morning

Many Palestinians were seen returning to the PA territories laden with blankets and equipment that looked as if they were or were preparing for a long stay in Israel. Unfortunately, we did not get to talk to them.

At the Meitar checkpoint on the Palestinian side, parking is full. Many crowd under the tree near the breach in the fence. The crossing is closed and only merchants are allowed to cross.

Since there is a corona eruption in the PA and especially in the southern Hebron Mountains, we decided to drive to Route 317 which splits from Route 60. The traffic of Palestinian vehicles was very sparse and the army did not show any presence.

The entrance to Samoa from Route 60 was open and the harvesters were on their way to pick up the fruits of the harvest.

The entrances to Dahariya, Karma and Abda are both open and Dura – El fawwar Junction is open in all directions.

The entrance to Kikilis has been closed for many years.

The Sheep Junction is closed by order of the Palestinian Authority.

We got off Route 60 to Route 356 to Pnei Haver  and from there we continued to Route 317 (map attached).

At the bus station of the Carmel settlement, a large sign against the annexation warns against the establishment of a state of Palestine. It is strange to be on the same side with the settlers though not for the same reasons.

Further down the road the landscape does not know about Corona. The sheep and the stones mix with each other and it is difficult to distinguish between them

Near Mitzpe Abigail the road is being improved and further along the road a new water line is being laid to the Susiya settlement of course. The right to water belongs to Jews only.

  • Dura Al-Fawwar Junction

    See all reports for this place
    • Junction on Route 60: west - the town of El Dura, east - the Al Fawwar refugee camp. There is a manned pillbox  at the junction. From time to time the army sets up flying checkpoints at the entrance to El Fawwar and Al Dura. Al-Fawwar is a large refugee camp (7,000 inhabitants in 2007) established in 1949 to accommodate Palestinian refugees from Be'er Sheva and Beit Jubrin and environs. There are many incidents of stone-throwing. In the vicinity of the pillbox there are excellent agricultural areas, Farmers set up stalls adjacent to the plots close to the road. In recent months the civil administration  has set up dirt embankments thereby blocking access to the stalls, and making it impossible for the farmers to sell their vegetables. Updated April 2021, Michal T.
  • Hakvasim (sheep) Junction

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    • One of the roadblocks (earthworks, rocks, concrete blocks or iron gates) that prevent transit of vehicles to Route 60 in the southern West Bank and block the southern entrance to Hebron. A manned pillbox supervises the place.
  • 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

       

       

      דפנה עם עזאם בסוסיא
      Muhammad D.
      Apr-21-2026
      Daphna with Azzam in Susiya
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