Hebron, Sansana (Meitar Crossing), South Hebron Hills

1. Meitar checkpoint

2. Road 60

3. Hebron

1. Meitar checkpoint

A. By chance we met there with Ahmad, the brother of Ya'kub al-Qian who was killed by the police in Umm al-Hiran. Explains that nothing is happening. For example, he got a plot at Hura, but he has no money to build on it. I mentioned that in a Channel 11 investigation this week they reported that the late Ya'kub was killed by the police because they mistakenly thought he was a terrorist, and also said that in the incident "a policeman was also killed" without blaming Ya'kub for his trampling [the policeman was apparently killed by other policemen's bullet  He was buried immediately without autopsy, so that the killing of Ya'kub as a so-called murderer who had done so with intent could be justified].

B. On the Israeli side of the aisle: the kiosk has been closed for a long time. Adjacent to it in Arabic are instructions for conduct during the corona on behalf of the Israeli Ministry of Health

Is there a problem with  the Hebron River drainage plant?

To the west of the crossing structure, lies the Hebron River. The sewage from Hebron, flows under the separation fence to the Israeli side, where there is supposed  to be a pipe that carries it for initial treatment at the facility near the fence, and from there for further treatment at the facility near Hura. At this point there is a large stinking puddle, to the delight of a beautiful flock of birds .... I passed the picture and information to Dr. Shlomit Tamari who no longer lives in the area but who is in connection with engineers of the purification facility. She passed them but so far no update has been received.

D. At  the crossing itself, there is a separate turnstile for the merchants to cross with relative ease  and through which they can also enter in the opposite direction from Israel to the territories

2. Road 60

A. A dividing line has begun to be cut between the two tracks in both directions, to prevent  drivers from falling asleep. Meanwhile, it goes  about north to Beit Hagai.

B. In the vicinity of the Dura-El-Fawwar junction, workers with glowing vests clean the side of the road. M. thinks  that they are employed by Israel.

C. M. Draws my attention to a sword structure in front of Karama, on the western side of the road - a school from the Mandate period which  served the surrounding villages including Abda. Here also one of his relations from the Ofakim area studied. He slept  in the surrounding villages, would come home once every two months, and paid teachers even with chicken or oil. When the father died and the family situation worsened, his studies were discontinued. I know that Khalil al-Sakakini was in charge of education on behalf of the Mandatory government and was involved in establishing government schools for Muslims [Christians already had a network of ecclesiastical private schools in which affluent Muslim families also studied]. I took a picture and will try to get material about this school.

D. M. Notes that the Palestinians call the checkpoints set up by the Palestinian Authority at the entrances from Area C to Area A "love checkpoints" because they are intended to protect against the spread of the corona from Israelis to Palestinians, as opposed to Israel's "occupation checkpoints" ....

3. Hebron.

A. We entered through the industrial area to the south. The Border Police checkpoint stops Palestinian cars at the entrance to their neighborhoods. Just to hassle them.

B. On Shuhada Street we meet Sharbati, in front of his house, in a conversation with a UN Watch [OCHA] volunteer. The olunteer gives us his business card, his name is Abdul Rahman Salayma, and  is from Hebron and lives in Tel Rumeida, speaks excellent English. It is said that the settlers built another cafe inside the Cave of the Patriarchs complex. *Suggests checking it out in the next shifts*.

C. Surprise at Tel Rumeida, on the street corner in front of the Palestinian grocery store:

"Fell during an operational activity in defense of the Jewish community in the ancestral city of Hebron"? All the websites on the internet reveal the results of the investigation. At that time there was a checkpoint at this point. This officer briefed his soldiers on the checkpoint, and since he had not taken care of the unloading of weapons before, a bullet was fired which  killed him. Two Palestinian neighbors who witnessed the horror pass by by chance  and testify. Among other things, it is said that the soldier  who shot him cried. One of them has a son who is a brother, who immediately went down in an attempt to save the officer but to no avail. They say that this monument was erected by the officer's father about 2 days ago, in the middle of the night. They are very angry about placing this dubious monument in front of their homes. The state of course backs this private initiative which  serves to help  in the policy of the strengthening of the occupation. I release my anger by photographing another corner of this junction, the Israeli flags on the electricity poles fluttering straight into the rooms of the Palestinians' house, this is their landscape and it is.

D. Conversation with Issa Amro.

Hagit B. received pictures from him documenting how the Civil Administration destroyed the corona testing center built by the Hebron municipality in the Palestinian neighborhood. So we made an appointment with him at the Tel Rumeida grocery store, to get a picture of what happened.

He says that since the beginning of the Corona period, the harassment of the settlers has increased. For example, they stole construction materials from him, his fence was cut off, he complained to the blue police and he has photocopied documentation of how he was physically assaulted in the presence of the police, nothing came of it. Palestinians caught without a mask near the Cave of the Patriarchs receive fines, the settlers do not. And the main problem now is a total blockade of the crossings to the neighborhood about three times a week, on the pretext that Palestinian children on the other side under Palestinian control are throwing stones at the checkpoints. The previous unit stationed in Hebron, Golani, did not respond so heavily in these cases to the Palestinians on our side, and that was wise, but this is not the policy of the current unit, Nahal. The IDF did not allow the distribution of protective equipment from Corona, it is stupid. Of course it endangers both the soldiers and the settlers. The Palestinian Authority has no money at all. In Hebron, the Palestinian private sector has been involved in financing the construction of test stations. Usually such an initiative regarding H2 requires coordination, but due to the annexation plan, the Palestinian Authority stopped the coordination, and the Hebron municipality did not want to be portrayed as a traitor to this policy so it did not try to coordinate. The Civil Administration's response was the destruction of the test station that was under construction in this area. not smart. Volunteers hand out masks because residents do not even have 2 shekels per mask, it is too expensive. This is an example of how an attempt is made to  continue activities with families, it is not possible to have community activities as before..

In conclusion. In a conversation with M.  we discuss certain resemblance that emerges this year between the mourning customs of Jews in the first nine days of the month of Av, until Tisha B'Av, and certain mourning customs of Muslims between this Rosh Chodesh and the Feast of Sacrifice which  will take place the day after Tisha B'Av. And in building the land for the benefit of all its inhabitants, inshallah, we will be comforted.