Huwwarw
Huwwara. 2 August 2005 a.mWatchers: Ninette B., Aharona M., Nava (guest), Dina A. (reporting)Tapuach Junction7:45 a.m. There is no ‘Bidul’ (separation) and the traffic flows well, there are 10 cars waiting, four soldiers are at the checkpoint.Huwwara North8:00 a.m. At the entrance to Nablus there are very many people walking with no interference except for the fact that they are forced to walk, women, men, children, the old and the young, many people with an eye covered, obviously there is an eye doctor in Nablus today.The vehicle traffic into Nablus also flows quickly, not more than three cars are there at any time and they all cross.At the exit from Nablus there are few people, according to the roadblock commander A., the roadblock is open from 5:00 a.m. because the families of prisoners left for a prison visit and he has no idea why no one is leaving Nablus.The system of checking is: two soldiers check the packages of those leaving before the turnstiles and then the crossing is speedy, there were no detainees the whole of the shift.The soldiers spread an atmosphere of relaxation, probably because there is no stress, although military policewomen need to have a course in ‘politeness’ there was nothing unusual in their behaviour but there was something unpleasant even between themselves.The real problem was for vehicles leaving Nablus, a bus that was checked when it arrived was held up for about an hour, at the same time the rest of the vehicles in the convoy wait. We talked to A., the commander, who explained that there is no alternative: first the passengers are checked; then the luggage and also the inside of the vehicle and all that goes on and on. He decided to open another checkpoint for cars, reinforced with two more soldiers and the convoy advanced, the average waiting time for buses too was not more than a quarter of an hour. When we left there was a queue of 5 cars.Both the commander and A., from the D.C.O. were helpful.Around 11:00 a.m. we left in the direction of Beit Furiq which was also deserted today, only a few people crossing.During the shift we also went to the southern roadblock, neglected and dirty, which has in and around it a small market and, as usual, a lot of taxis.Tapuach Junction, miraculously, is deserted, just one car being checked.The weather was wonderful.
Huwwara
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The Huwwara checkpoint is an internal checkpoint south of the city of Nablus, at the intersection of Roads 60 and 5077 (between the settlements of Bracha and Itamar). This checkpoint was one of the four permanent checkpoints that closed on Nablus (Beit Furik and Awarta checkpoints to the east and the Beit Iba checkpoint to the west). It was a pedestrian-only barrier. As MachsomWatch volunteers, we watched therre since 2001 two shifts a day - morning and noon, the thousands of Palestinians leaving Nablus and waiting for hours in queues to reach anywhere else in the West Bank, from the other side of the checkpoint the destination could only be reached by public transport. In early June 2009, as part of the easing of Palestinian traffic in the West Bank, the checkpoint was opened to vehicular traffic. The passage was free, with occasional military presence in the guard tower. Also, there were vehicle inspections from time to time. Since the massacre on 7.10.2023, the checkpoint has been closed to Palestinians.
On February 26, 2023, about 400 settlers attacked the town's residents for 5 hours and set fire to property, such as houses and cars. Disturbances occurred in response to a shooting of two Jewish residents of Har Bracha by a Palestinian Terrorist. The soldiers stationed in the town did not prevent the arson and rescued Palestinian families from their homes only after they were set on fire. No one was punished and Finance Minister Smotrich stated that "the State of Israel should wipe out Hawara." Left and center organizations organized solidarity demonstrations and support actions for the residents of Hawara.Hawara continued to be in the headlines in all the months that followed: more pogroms by the settlers, attacks by Palestinians and a massive presence of the army in the town. It amounted to a de facto curfew of commerce and life in the center of the city. On October 5, 2023, MK Zvi established a Sukkah in the center of Hawara and hundreds of settlers backed the army blocked the main road and held prayers in the heart of the town all night and the next day. On Saturday, October 7, 23 The "Swords of Iron" war began with an attack by Hamas on settlements surrounding Gaza in the face of a poor presence of the IDF. Much criticism has been made of the withdrawal of military forces from the area surrounding Gaza and their placement in the West Bank, and in the Hawara and Samaria region in particular, as a shield for the settlers who were taking over and rioting.
On November 12, 2023, the first section of the Hawara bypass road intended for Israeli traffic only was opened. In this way, the settlers can bypass the road that goes through the center of Hawara, which is the main artery for traffic from the Nablus area to Ramallah and the south of the West Bank. For the construction of the road, the Civil Administration expropriated 406 dunams of private land belonging to Palestinians from the nearby villages. The settlers are not satisfied with this at the moment, and demand to also travel through Hawara itself in order to demonstrate presence and control.(updated November 2023)
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Shoshi AnbarMay-18-2025Huwara: The old houses in Area C
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