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Hebron, Sansana, South Hebron Hills, Sun 2.5.10, Morning

Observers: Netanya and Yael Z. (reports)
May-02-2010
| Morning

Translator:  Charles K. 

06:45-09:45, Lag Ba’Omer
 
Sansana-Meitar crossing
The checkpoint is deserted even though it’s Sunday.  Many trucks loaded with sand on the eastern side of the checkpoint. One bus arrives, signaling that today there are family visits with prisoners.  On our way back we saw three buses packed with families waiting for the police on the Israeli side of the checkpoint. 

R
oute 60
Almost no traffic, a few children walking to school in the damp mist.  All the roadblocks are in place, and the gates that are usually open are also open today.

Hebron
Signs are visible all along the way announcing the Lag Ba’Omer children’s parade.  A soldier tells us that it was held yesterday, on Shabbat!!  Maybe that’s why the city is asleep.  The Jews have no school, and the children and their parents must be sleeping in.  Many discarded flyers and posters around the Cave of the Patriarchs, and rubbish that is probably left over from yesterday’s revelry.  Beit Gutnick is also silent.  Even the Nahal soldiers seem to stand sleepily at their stations.  No detainees and no one is going through the checkpoints.

Worshippers’ route

Metal plates studded with nails have been added to reinforce the concrete barriers recently erected, preventing even a glimpse from the road into the building courtyards and the side alleys that the local population used to go through.  Apparently the roadblocks are intended to limit movement in the area forever.  How sad.

  • 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

      חברון - יוסרי ג'אבר וחלק ממשפחתו
      Raya Yeor
      Dec-18-2025
      Hebron - Yusri Jaber and part of his family
  • 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

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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

       

       

      הכניסה למערה המשמשת מקלט במלחמה למשפחת נעימן
      Muhammad D.
      Apr-16-2026
      The entrance to the cave that served as a refuge during the war for the Na'iman family
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