South Hebron Hills - life under Apartheid

Place:

Sansana (Meitar Crossing)

South Hebron Hills

Observers:

Muhammad and Ariela; Translator: Natanya

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Apr-6-2021

Morning

A new outpost being built

Photo:

Ariela Slonim

Abu Safi's cave home

Photo:

Ariela Slonim

Solar electricity at Abu Safi's

Photo:

Ariela Slonim

The day started with good news. Muhammad met Muhammad Abu Arkub, a merchant from Yatta who has been allowed to enter Israel after six months during which he was not allowed because of the Corona. This was the first day on which merchants were allowed to enter Israel and were also vaccinated against Corona at the checkpoint.

Parking on the Palestinian side of the checkpoint was full, but Route 60 was deserted.

We entered Meitarim, the industrial area of the South Hebron Hills local council, to watch a new outpost being built and the person who lives in it is the son of Noam Federman. The outpost, three caravans meanwhile, is on a hill on the left of the picture and a road, apparently occupied by the army, leads to it. On the right is the village of Zanuta. I wonder how they get water and electricity. In Zanuta I know, there is no water and electricity network. We will continue to follow.

We returned to visit Abu Safi in Wadi Rathim. The family actually lives in an enlarged cave, but the paintings of Rania, the so talented young woman, give some extra dimension to the absurd reality in which they live. Eleven people live there. All the big girls work in the pasture, feeding the animals and in the field, even those who are supposed to study, because otherwise there is nothing to live on. The herd of the settler, Israel Kaplan, has also eliminated about ten dunams of pasture that Abu Safi sowed.

The water problem is very troubling to Abu Safi. Every time we came to him he always talked about the water, and indeed his living area is laden with pipes of all kinds. There is plumbing that leads from the black containers to the house and plumbing that leads from the house to the plants around the house. Abu Safi has three containers in each three-cubic-meter container that is sufficient for three days because there are also animals that need water like any living creature. Water is also very expensive because it has to be transported. When the water is brought to him, three cubic meters cost him 150 NIS and when he drives himself with his tractor, the diesel costs him about 100 NIS.

The human right to water is recognized as a fundamental human right in international law.

"The right to water is essential to life with human dignity" [UN Commission on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights].

This is how the living area of Abu Safi is and how the enlightened occupation looks.

Location Description

Yata / Southern Hebron hills

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Yatta is a city located in the South Hebron Hills region. It is located in the border zone between the fertile area of Hebron and its surroundings and the desert of the Hebron Hills. Yatta has about 64,000 inhabitants. The surrounding villages are called Masafar 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, a number of 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 the withholding of 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. Road blocks 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

Apr-10-2024

Muhammad D.

Sa'ir - Yael and Ahmad

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Meitar

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Sansana (Meitar Crossing)

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The checkpoint is located on the Green Line and serves as a border crossing between Israel and the West Bank. It is managed by the Border Crossing Authority of the Defense Ministry. It is comprised of sections for the transfer of goods as well as a vehicle checkpoint (intended for holders of blue identity cards, foreign nationals or diplomats and international organizations). Passing of Palestinians is prohibited, except for those with entry permits to Israel. Palestinians are permitted to cross on foot only. The crossing has a DCO (District Coordination Office), a customs unit, supervision, and a police unit.

In the last year, a breach has been opened in the fence, not far from the crossing. This breach is known to all, including the army. There does not appear to be any interest in blocking it, probably as it permits needed Palestinian workers without the bureaucratic permits to get to work in Israel. Food stalls and a parking area economy have been created, but incidents of violent abuse by border police have also been recorded.

Updated April 2022