Hebron, Sansana, South Hebron Hills, Tue 15.12.09, Morning
Trans. by Charles K.
Sansana – Meitar
At 06:45 the fenced corridor is empty, and only relatives of prisoners wait under the awning. Laborers who came through sit in groups around small fires and wait for their rides to work.
Route 60
Nothing special, all the roadblocks that were opened are still open, small children walking to school on the side of the roads; they’re not privileged to be driven to school. This is Area C, under Israeli authority. Transportation for schoolchildren falls into the gap between the Israeli regime and the Palestinian Authority. It’s unclear, and incomprehensible and certainly annoying in weather like this.
Hebron
The city is quiet. The settlers are celebrating the holiday of the Maccabees.
At Curve 160 we notice that Golani soldiers replaced the Border Police. Above the curve, on the road down to the Cave of the Patriarchs, there are also soldiers in one of the alleys.
Pharmacy checkpoint – The children pass through the magnemometer on their way to school without delays. We see something we haven’t seen before: Soldiers on the roof of the house overlooking the checkpoint on the left. According to the peace activists, there were also soldiers on the roof of their house, which is in area H1. They said that it has happened from time to time recently. All the other checkpoints are manned as usual, but we saw no detainees.
It’s also quiet at the checkpoints around the Cave of the Patriarchs, and no detainees.
Anat Cohen passed by, looked at us, and this time, we were thankful to see, she didn’t stop. We hurry away. There is no Palestinian traffic on the Zion route. “Someone” decided it didn’t pay to open it. Too much inspection manpower was “wasted” on the little freedom of movement the Palestinians had there. The Jewish community in Hebron has now be designated an area of national priority, and it’s obvious who’ll suffer directly from that (and already suffers).
Routes 356-317
No sign of human life. The infrastructure is there, the road is wide, meant for many people and heavy traffic, and the main beneficiary – residents of illegal outposts and isolated settlements – wonderful areas of national priority.
Addendum
On a personal note – Zamir, my spouse, joined our shift. All the stories I told him, all the insights I shared with him – weren’t enough, nor were they able to make him understand the depth of the injustice of this occupation, until he saw with his own eyes after not having been to these places for 30 years. It’s sad to realize how accustomed I’ve become to the terrible things I see, and how someone seeing them for the first time notices and reacts to things that I’ve gotten used to. His impressions will be reported separately.
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
Raya YeorDec-18-2025Hebron - Yusri Jaber and part of his family
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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
MuhammadFeb-24-2026South Hebron Hill, Beit Hagai: Paving an internal security road
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