Huwarra
Huwwara 10 March 2005 Watchers: Dorit L., Dana S., Michal S. reporting: Osnat A. A day without a roadblock, almost.6:30 a.m. We commenced our day on the bridge between A-Zwiya and Mascha. Perhaps because of the rainy weather we see no traffic apart from a few people waiting to be picked up under the olive trees.We continue and get onto road 5066 from Kfar Harat to Jit Junction. Along the way there are direction signs and names of settlements – but only the names of the Jewish settlements are marked. We pass by local villages whose names are not on the signs, not even at the entrance to the village.All the way to Kfar Sarara there were no roadblocks. No roadblocks at the Jit Junction.Sarara – A roadblock with two soldiers and two others posted above. Empty. The soldier explains to us, with a smile, that there is no traffic today because, he heard from a local who passed by, the road on the other side of the village is open. The roadblock is still here. It will be interesting to see what happens next.The road is open up to the Huwwara roadblock.Huwwara South – no soldiers. The roadblock is closed. To think that just a number of weeks ago they were still building and adding electronic doors to the soldiers checkpoints and to the holding area. Pedestrians cross without regular checks except for a selected few. When we were there those wanting to enter Nablus were not checked. Vehicles were checked at the northern side of the roadblock.Huwwara North – the traffic is flowing, no one is held up. The age range of those held has gone down to 14 – 20 (it was 14 – 25).Beit Furik – The traffic of pedestrians is sparse and quick. The traffic of trucks and cars carrying loads in the direction of Nablus is quick. When we arrive there were five cars.8:20 a.m.Tapuach Junction – Hurrah, hurrah, hurrah. Only four cars. The traffic is flowing well. We cross the roadblock in less than five minutes.At the entrance to >b>Kfar Marda – a military jeep with an armed soldier beside it. Everything is empty and we continue on.At the foot of Ariel – a military jeep stops a local car for a check. An unannounced roadblock for a random check…A-Zwiya/Mascha – we are on the road. There is no roadblock at the usual place but after we continue our journey we surmise that perhaps the roadblock has moved, because of the rains, to a “better” place – under the bridge.
Huwwara
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The Huwwara checkpoint is an internal checkpoint south of the city of Nablus, at the intersection of Roads 60 and 5077 (between the settlements of Bracha and Itamar). This checkpoint was one of the four permanent checkpoints that closed on Nablus (Beit Furik and Awarta checkpoints to the east and the Beit Iba checkpoint to the west). It was a pedestrian-only barrier. As MachsomWatch volunteers, we watched therre since 2001 two shifts a day - morning and noon, the thousands of Palestinians leaving Nablus and waiting for hours in queues to reach anywhere else in the West Bank, from the other side of the checkpoint the destination could only be reached by public transport. In early June 2009, as part of the easing of Palestinian traffic in the West Bank, the checkpoint was opened to vehicular traffic. The passage was free, with occasional military presence in the guard tower. Also, there were vehicle inspections from time to time. Since the massacre on 7.10.2023, the checkpoint has been closed to Palestinians.
On February 26, 2023, about 400 settlers attacked the town's residents for 5 hours and set fire to property, such as houses and cars. Disturbances occurred in response to a shooting of two Jewish residents of Har Bracha by a Palestinian Terrorist. The soldiers stationed in the town did not prevent the arson and rescued Palestinian families from their homes only after they were set on fire. No one was punished and Finance Minister Smotrich stated that "the State of Israel should wipe out Hawara." Left and center organizations organized solidarity demonstrations and support actions for the residents of Hawara.Hawara continued to be in the headlines in all the months that followed: more pogroms by the settlers, attacks by Palestinians and a massive presence of the army in the town. It amounted to a de facto curfew of commerce and life in the center of the city. On October 5, 2023, MK Zvi established a Sukkah in the center of Hawara and hundreds of settlers backed the army blocked the main road and held prayers in the heart of the town all night and the next day. On Saturday, October 7, 23 The "Swords of Iron" war began with an attack by Hamas on settlements surrounding Gaza in the face of a poor presence of the IDF. Much criticism has been made of the withdrawal of military forces from the area surrounding Gaza and their placement in the West Bank, and in the Hawara and Samaria region in particular, as a shield for the settlers who were taking over and rioting.
On November 12, 2023, the first section of the Hawara bypass road intended for Israeli traffic only was opened. In this way, the settlers can bypass the road that goes through the center of Hawara, which is the main artery for traffic from the Nablus area to Ramallah and the south of the West Bank. For the construction of the road, the Civil Administration expropriated 406 dunams of private land belonging to Palestinians from the nearby villages. The settlers are not satisfied with this at the moment, and demand to also travel through Hawara itself in order to demonstrate presence and control.(updated November 2023)
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Ronit Dahan-RamatiAug-24-2026Huwara: The school on the outskirts of town and an outpost hidden among the trees
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Jit Junction
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The checkpoint is located on Route 60 near at the junction with Route 55, near the village of Jit. There was a checkpoint for vehicles passing between the north and south of the West Bank, which was abolished towards 2010. Since then, surprise checkpoints have been set up there from time to time with a police or Border Police vehicle, and vehicles and their passengers are inspected.
Anat PolakJul-17-2025Yitzhar Road, Jit Junction: traffic jam
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