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Hebron, Sansana, South Hebron Hills, Mon 26.5.08, Morning

Observers: Yeela L. and Judy A. (English)
May-26-2008
| Morning

7:00-9:30

Sansana (Meitar) CP 
(7:15) No one waiting to cross.


Route 60

Dura – El Fawar – Open.

Sheep Junction – Barriers are gone and an observation tower has been built.  Instead of a steady stream of pedestrians crossing, vehicles were freely crossing from one side to the other. Taxi drivers told us that the Israeli police were setting up temporary roadblocks once a day for an hour or so in order to check driver id and registration and issue citations. The time of the road blocks varied from day to day.

Shuyukh junction –  Army jeep on Hebron side of the road monitoring pedestrian traffic. Taxi drivers report that Border Police jeeps are there morning and evening.  Soldiers order men beyond the barrier to put up their hands and cross over to have their IDs checked. The checking can take 5 minutes to 2 hours. While we were talking to the taxi drivers, an army jeep pulled up and asked Ibrahim for his ID and why he was waiting at the junction. It left after a couple of minutes.

Hebron
(8:15) Soldiers, both Border Police and Nahal, in all the usual places, even more soldiers than usual. At the Pharmacy crossing, 7 soldiers stood in a line checking their weapons. Very few people crossing.  Tarpat and Tel Rumedia – almost no pedestrian activity. At the crossing near the Patriarch Cave’s, two men were being held, one of them was a teenager – 16 years. They had been waiting for 20 minutes and were held another 15 until they were released. One of the shop owners told us that the settlers tell tourists not to shop at their stores. Loud music was coming from the Gutnick Hevron Center.

  • 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:

       

      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

      Hebron - Ata's grandchildren are enjoying the umbrellas we brought
      Michal Tsadik
      May-26-2008
      Hebron - Ata's grandchildren are enjoying the umbrellas we brought
  • 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
  • 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

       

       

      סימיא: פרחאן ואשתו בביתם
      Daphna Jung
      Mar-16-2025
      Simia: Farhan and his wife
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