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Hebron, Sansana (Meitar Crossing), South Hebron Hills, Sun 18.3.12, Morning

Observers: Lea and Yael (Reporting)
Mar-18-2012
| Morning

Translator:  Charles K.

 

Meitar crossing

All the congestion is in the parking lot on the Israeli side; there are no laborers on the Palestinian side.  More and more cars arrive to park there.

 

Highway 60

All the crossings are open and quiet, children peacefully walk to school along the road.  A military vehicle watches the entrance to Bani Na’im.

 

Hebron

Soldiers from the Kfir battalion have come to do guard duty in the city.  There are more of them at all the positions than we’ve been used to.  Two of the international volunteers at the beginning of Shuhadah Street tell us that they’re not carrying out inspections very strictly.

They are, in fact, letting the children and teachers through quickly at the Pharmacy and the Tarpa”t checkpoints.

TIP soldiers stand by the checkpoints in triplet formation, their cars parked along the street.

One soldier at the post opposite Beit Hadassah carefully pats down every young man coming by; meanwhile, his colleagues check ID’s with the Civil Administration.  We stop to talk with the soldiers, and Anat Cohen quickly arrives, orders the soldiers to send us packing – and spews pearls at us.

The police armored vehicle arrives to find out who we are and tells us we’re not allowed to stand here because it’s a military position.  It turns out that what he means is that the entire street is a military position; he actually chases us away and follows us down to the market.  Anat, of course, is allowed to enter a military position.  All of the residents of Beit Aharonson come out to their cars just as we pass by, and shower curses at us, telling us “get out of here.”  It feels as if the extremism is only growing more pointed.

So we got out of there, sensing the violence accompanying the bitter cold we felt everywhere in the City of the Patriarchs.

We drove back via Zif junction, Ma’on and Carmel – it was peacefully quiet and green.

  • Hebron

    See all reports for this place
    • 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:

       

      1. Bet Hameriva CP- manned with a pillbox
      2. Kapisha quarter CP (the northern side of Zion axis) - manned with a pillbox
      3. The 160 turn CP (the southern side of Zion axis) - manned with a pillbox
      4. Avraham Avinu quarter - watch station
      5. The pharmacy CP - checking inside a caravan with a magnometer
      6. Tarpat (1929) CP - checking inside a caravan with a magnometer
      7. Tel Rumeida CP - guarding station
      8. Beit Hadassah CP - guarding station

      Three checkpoints around the Tomb of the Patriarchs

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  • Meitar checkpoint / Sansana

    See all reports for this place
    • 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
  • South Hebron Hills

    See all reports for this place
    • 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

       

       

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