Sha’ab al-Butum – large olive trees could not be harvested because access wasforbidden
A shift without unusual events: the siege of the settlements continues, the settlers’ takeover of the lands continues, and the army reinforces the blockades.
The third week of Ramadan. The traffic on road 317 is very sparse, and there is little Palestinian traffic on the roads.
Passing abandoned communities: in the distance what remains of the bustling school of Zanuta, all of whose residents were forced to leave. Further on in Wadi Radim, the Israeli flag flies over what was the glorious kingdom of Abu Safi, who wisely managed a self-sufficient economy. Today he lives as a sick refugee in Samu’ which like the other villages, is locked and closed.
And on the other hand, new military posts are emerging, such as against Susiya. Asa’el is expanding. Yinon, whose accounts were blocked by the USA, takes over the lands and ploughs the stolen lands. We saw his car in the distance.
We stopped on the road at the entrance to Sha’ab Al Butum. Muhammad pointed to a field where the owner of the plot had harvested some wheat and young olive trees. A little further there is a plot with large olive trees. The trees were not harvested. Access is impossible and opposite a new yellow gate.
We visited in Susiya, which is closed, Azzam and Wadha. A light breeze and a pleasant atmosphere and fluent conversation and a blooming garden – as if there is no siege in the world. The youngest son came back, thin after a month in Ramla prison. He had worked illegally in Israel. Azzam told about the neighbour who was beaten by gangs of settlers from the Talia farm, who come masked. He said that it is forbidden to move away more than 100 m. or even less from their homes. And there is no one to protect them.
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
Raya YeorMay-15-2025No-traffic signs around Dahariya
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