Shweika - after the expulsion from Zanuta, earning a living is difficult
Fares Samamra and his family, along with other families, were expelled from the village of Zanuta after years of abuse by the settler Yinon and his gang, from the village of Meitarim near Zanuta. In Zanuta, the family subsisted on sheep and dairy products and a little farming. On his land, he grew barley as feed for the sheep, zucchini and facus (a type of zucchini).
In Shweika, where they were forced to move, the sheep and their products remained their only livelihood. There is no possibility of cultivating agricultural land there. Pasture is restricted, as in all the villages we visit, by settlers who threaten and do not allow grazing more than 50-100 meters from the residential area. As a result, Palestinians who own sheep are forced to buy food bags, which further complicates their financial situation.
Fares says that about 10 days ago, his son went out to graze the flock near their house. At that time, a girl was grazing the flock of the abusive settler, Elyashiv Nahum, from the nearby Yehuda farm. The girl called Elyashiv Nahum by phone and he quickly arrived with 8 soldiers at the entrance to the family house. Fares asked Elyashiv what the problem was, and Elyashiv replied that it was his territory, and they were invading, which of course was the opposite.
Fares took the soldiers and as proof of this, showed them their water well, which is proof of their ownership of the area in question, and from which the flock drinks.
An explanation that his family has lived in the place for several generations put the minds of the soldiers at ease, until next time.
Hana, Fares’ wife, makes a brick and a stone of yogurt like every year at this time.
Location Description
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
Daphna JungMar-16-2025Simia: Farhan and his wife
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Zanuta
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Zanuta was a small rural Palestinian locality until its demolition. It was situated in the space around the town Dahariya in the South Hebron Hills, about a ten-minute ride from Meitar Checkpoint. There are documented remains of a large Byzantine settlement in the area. Since the Ottoman (Turkish Empire) period (1516-1917) Zanuta was documented as a locality of shepherds and farmers who live in the remains of the ancient structures and the residential caves near them.
Two individual ranches of colonists were created next to Zanuta: Meitarim (of the colonist Yinon Levi) to the east, and Yehudah (of the colonist Elyashiv Nachum) to the north. Endless attacks, harassments and attempt to chase away the Zanuta villagers have originated in these two outposts.
Until the expulsion, four families lived in the village: A-Samama, Al-Tel, Al Batat, and Al-Qaisia. Farming constituted their main economic activity and employed most of the villagers. The total area of the village is about 12,000 dunams, of which about 3,000 are tended, mostly with field crops.
This village has never had a master plan that would legitimize construction permits. The Civil Administration claimed it was too small and the distance to the next town, Dahariya, too great. For this reason, the Israeli authorities pressured the villagers to leave. The colonists did the job for them.
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