South Hebron
South Hebron Hills, Tuesday 26.9.04, AMWatchers : Dana L, DanaH, yaela L Nurit Sh (reporting in Hebrew; Elena L:translation) Dura –al FawwarPeople were crossing freely ,except for four men who were detained for two and a half hours – and this despite the fact that we called captain Hadi at the Hebron DCO and the army’s Humanitarian Center. Later Etan of the Humanitarian Center called us to ask what had happened to the detainees.A nice soldier (A.) told us that the four had been detained on a random basisThe soldiers of a patrol which arrived at the crossing told us that our presence in the area had been reported to them-a circumstance which made extra man power necessary (we didn’t see anything to confirm this).Sheep’s crossing – completely openShiyukh junction When we passed there the first time soldiers were standing on both sides of the road with guns cocked and the crossings on both sides were completely closed. We didn’t understand what was happening. We continued without stopping. There was an extraordinary amount of traffic on route 35. Palestinian taxis and buses were waiting at two places.Hebron- Halhul BridgeWhile we were still in Area C soldiers in the pillbox demanded that we leave. We saw that a fire had broken out and we reported it to Etan of the Humanitarian Center- he called us back a few minutes later to tell us that a fire engine was on its way.When we passed underneath the bridge we could see in area A below that there was a CP where a large number of people were crowded together.We returned via Shiyukh junction. We saw that the soldiers arrayed for attack had gone. Instead an army jeep and a settler were there. On the road there was broken glass. We saw Palestinians rioting and throwing stones about 300-400 meters beyond the junction.The soldiers asked us to leave the junction. We stood there for about fifteen minutes. During that time the settler moved about among the soldiers. He reported to a “chief” and at a certain stage took out a video camera and turned it first towards the Palestinians and filmed them and afterwards turned the camera in a blatant manner towards us and filmed us. He also wrote down the license plate number of I.’s vehicleWe also wrote down what we were able to get of his particulars.His car was a land rover – the number was 752-66-08 – and it bore the legend: Nir Gad and the telephone number 02 -6733888.We returned to the Dura al- Fawwar junction. The four detainees had been released, but there were two new ones in their stead. We were unable to deal them because I. was in a hurry to get home.
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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