Hebron, South Hebron Hills
9:00-12:00
Route 60 was relatively free of traffic. There is now a watchtower and a security gate at the main entrance to Abda. The secondary entrance to Abda is open raising the question as to why it was necessary to put a watchtower and gate at one entrance while leaving the other open.
The checkpoint being constructed at the entrance to the Kefisha neighborhood is almost completed. We were stopped by a Border Police jeep as we drove on the road to Giv’at Harsina. We were told that it was a closed military area and were forced to turn back. When we tried to get patrol to stop near the grocery store so we could get more information as to why it had become a closed military area, the jeep sped off. We continued on to the area of the Cave of Patriarchs where we had our second unpleasant encounter with the Border Police. We were told it was against the law to park on the street in front of the Cave of the Patriarchs even though we were in a van with Israeli plates. We countered that it wasn’t against the law. It was clear that the ‘law’ was invoked because Mohamed was driving. Not wanting to raise the temperature further, we drove on. At the Tel Rumeida mobile checkpoint , the soldiers allowed us to pass so that we could go up to the cemetery. There are now two more checkpoints on the road behind the cemetery: one preventing Palestinians from freely entering the Palestinian neighborhood around the cemetery and the second leading to the Tel Rumeida archeological site.
On our return, we drove to see the wall that is now being constructed near the Eshkolot settlement and which will eventually replace the remaining barb wire separating it from the surrounding Palestinian towns. In order to construction this section of the wall, land belong to families living the Palestinian towns of Adh-Dhahiriya, Dura and Ar-Ramadin was confiscated
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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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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