Sinjil: The metal gate blocking the main entrance

We met Musfata at Rosh Ha’ayin and drove eastward on Road 5. On our way we saw expansion works of the Barqan Industrial Zone, passed Ariel and the closed entrance of Marda. At Za’atara (Tapuach) Junction we turned south on Road 60. We stopped at A.’s grocery in Louben A Sharqiya to hear about the dire conditions of the village. No livelihood, no entry permits to work in Israel, the army occasionally closes off the main entrance which makes work more difficult even in other town in the West Bank. The children have gone back to school.

We continued south on Road 60 from which we turned on Road 5058 towards Ma’ale Levona, a winding road with beautiful hill view, crossed at Lachish Junction to road 5056 and reached Sinjil from the north. We picked up A. at home on the outskirts of the town that occupied quite a large area, and drove to the main entrance from Road 60. The orange-colored gate blocks it permanently and prevents the villagers from reaching other places in the West Bank directly.

We continued driving to the fields across the main road, whose owners are not allowed to access and till since October 2023.

We stopped at the track the army opened alongside the road, adjacent to the residences of the townspeople, uprooted and cut olive trees over a hundred years old. Along the track we saw a house whose inhabitants have deserted long ago, destroyed, its building stones stolen, and another structure with a well next to it, closed, its owners gone because of the harassment by settlers and the army.

Continuing our drive, in another junction we saw more security cameras being installed, pointed to Sinjil in all directions.

We drove back through Salfit, impressed with the ancient, well-tended terraces, and got on Road 5.