Dura-Al Fawwar Junction, Hebron, Sansana (Meitar Crossing), South Hebron Hills
Hebron
We resumed our shifts after a long absence – from Shoket junction to the Meitar crossing and from there on Highway 60 to Hebron. All the settlements along the way are expanding, more and more new buildings.
The entrances to the villages are now open, and as M. says – the bulldozer worked hard to remove the roadblocks that had until recently been in place. The Dura al-Fawwar junction is also fully open. Everything looks as if nothing had changed. Almost no soldiers on the roads – occasionally a few, or a military vehicle.
A sign at the entrance to Kiryat Arba: “The sale has begun” (of new buildings).
A sign on the Hazon David synagogue: “Onward with courage and valor.” Two relaxed soldiers on guard.
The streets are very quiet, literally empty. You can’t, of course, miss the large signs Hagit and Nili saw the day before yesterday…
Many innovations at the checkpoints: Curve 160 is better protected by coils of razor wire, additional checkpoints where previously there had been none (on the way to ‘Azzam, for example), a few checkpoints have become electronic (Pharmacy, for example). A new green net fence near the Cave of the Patriarchs; Palestinians pass only behind it.
An American journalist at ‘Abed’s, doesn’t want to talk to us at all, even after we showed her our badge. ‘Abed and his son are as pleasant as ever. In response to our question they say there aren’t many tourists. That’s how it seemed while we sat there briefly.
More Israeli flags have been added along Shuhadah Street above the sealed shops, stuck onto the walls of home of Palestinians who still live there. Provocation for its own sake.
The owner of the grocery opposite ‘Azzam welcomes us with true pleasure (as if to say, “Welcome back”).
Back along Highway 317. Many children walking along the side of the road, returning from the UNRWA school (no yellow buses here…).
The settlement of Carmel is also expanding.
We saw two surveyors on a hill near Ma’on, measuring to expand the settlement?
Dura Al-Fawwar Junction
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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.
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Hebron
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According to Wye Plantation Accords (1997), Hebron is divided in two: H1 is under Palestinian Authority control, H2 is under Israeli control. In Hebron there are 170,000 Palestinian citizens, 60,000 of them in H2. Between the two areas are permanent checkpoints, manned at all hours, preventing Palestinian movement between them and controlling passage of permit holders such as teachers and schoolchildren. Some 800 Jews live in Avraham Avinu Quarter and Tel Rumeida, on Givat HaAvot and in the wholesale market.
Checkpoints observed in H2:
- Bet Hameriva CP- manned with a pillbox
- Kapisha quarter CP (the northern side of Zion axis) - manned with a pillbox
- The 160 turn CP (the southern side of Zion axis) - manned with a pillbox
- Avraham Avinu quarter - watch station
- The pharmacy CP - checking inside a caravan with a magnometer
- Tarpat (1929) CP - checking inside a caravan with a magnometer
- Tel Rumeida CP - guarding station
- Beit Hadassah CP - guarding station
Three checkpoints around the Tomb of the Patriarchs
Muhammad D.May-13-2026Hebron - Request for compensation for land expropriation
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Meitar checkpoint / Sansana
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Meitar Checkpoint / Sansana The checkpoint is located on the Green Line and serves as a border crossing between Israel and the West Bank. It is managed by the Border Crossing Authority of the Defense Ministry. It is comprised of sections for the transfer of goods as well as a vehicle checkpoint (intended for holders of blue identity cards, foreign nationals or diplomats and international organizations). Passing of Palestinians is prohibited, except for those with entry permits to Israel. Palestinians are permitted to cross on foot only. The crossing has a DCO / DCL / DCL / DCL (District Coordination Office), a customs unit, supervision, and a police unit. In the last year, a breach has been opened in the fence, not far from the crossing. This breach is known to all, including the army. There does not appear to be any interest in blocking it, probably as it permits needed Palestinian workers without the bureaucratic permits to get to work in Israel. Food stalls and a parking area economy have been created, but incidents of violent abuse by border police have also been recorded. Updated April 2022
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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
Yael ZoranJun-18-2026An ambulance is waiting in front of the closed checkpoint in El-Fawwar
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