Umm Qusa - shots from the outpost in the former British police, in their direction
Shift to Umm Qusa.
The shift was to Umm Qusa, which we have already visited several times.
We decided to drive through Route 60 to check the condition of the roadblocks along the road. We learned that there are sometimes changes.
Samu’ – the checkpoint is open
Simia – closed with concrete blocks. In front of Simia, an olive grove which could not be entered with a vehicle due to piles of dirt.
Dahariya – has been blocked for a long time. Vehicles coming from the area to Dahariya, wait for vehicles from Dahariya, what is called back to back.
Karma – an olive grove was blocked by piles of dirt to block the entrance of a vehicle.
Yatta – entrance from Zif junction is open.
Khalet al Mai – open.
We made a stop at Nabil’s grocery store at the Zif junction to purchase food for Najah and his family from Umm Qusa.
Driving on Route 358 and near the Carmel settlement we turned left towards Zwidin and from there to Umm Qusa. The Shorashim (roots) farm of Shimon Attia who gained control over the area, entered Umm al Kheir with his flock of sheep, built a shed not far from the road to Zwidin, hoisted 2 flags and next to it a wooden swing. He has taken over another area and probably intends to rest there and to entertain.
We stopped by the school of Umm Qusa, which previously received demolition orders, and in the meantime, starting on September 1, the school year opened and continues normally. We met the teacher, Yusef, who said that they study there from kindergarten to fifth grade. From the 6th grade until the end of high school they study at Zwidin.
We reached Najah. The children are at school. This time we were happy to see that he once again set up a small greenhouse with radishes, eggplants and cauliflower. In the meantime, there is also water in the tanks.
As we have already written, Najah worked in Israel and saved up to build a small house on his property. The civil administration destroyed what he had managed to build (an expenditure of NIS 80,000, which in the meantime went down the drain). After a while, the administrator admitted that the demolition was carried out by mistake and a trial is underway, but it is not known when it will be reopened. The family lives in a shack, with only a few mattresses inside. A demolition order has also been issued for this shack many years ago.
Najah gave a power of attorney to attorney Emil Mishraky from the Snif organization to deal with the issue.
I ask what’s new with the settler Yoav who set up an outpost on the nearby British police station. Najah says that there is no night that there are not shots from the outpost in their direction, and about 15 dogs are released which come near their homes.
There is no work since the war and the food package we purchased, clothes and games we brought with us made them happy for a while. Najah’s wife is scheduled to undergo surgery to remove kidney stones in the coming days at the Yatta Hospital.
They have no way to finance the cost of the surgery, 4000 NIS.
We will be in touch with them to update.
#This is the occupation
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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Umm al-Kheir
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Umm al-Kheir
A Palestinian village in the southern Hebron governorate, populated by five families. The Palestinian residents settled there decades ago, after Israel expelled them from the Arad desert and purchased the land from the residents of the Palestinian village of Yatta. The village suffers from the violence of nearby Carmel settlers, from water shortage and is subject to frequent demolition of buildings by the Civil Administration.
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Zif Junction
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Zif Junction located on the crossroads that directs towards Road 356 to Yata. Yata is the district city of the southern Hebron Mountains. Usually, this junction is open to traffic. The nearby pillbox is unmanned. But the army and police are present occasionally, sometimes setting up a checkpoint and sometimes detaining residents from the big city. Often, the Israeli policemen inspect vehicles and distribute driving reports to Palestinian vehicles. s
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