South Hebron Hills - expansion of settlements
Muhammad, Samadar and Michal (reporting); Translator: Natanya
Following various reports we received from acquaintances in the area, we went to see the convoy of caravans going towards Mitzpe Eshtamoa which is on route 60, in front of the old Shema settlement.
We arrived by a side road from the Shwaka area, and saw from afar the cranes busy placing the caravans as an extension of Mitzpe Eshtamoa. It is an illegal outpost, with all the infrastructure and security. A bus stop has long been located on the road at its foot. A large number of caravans arrived, as can be seen in the photo which we received from somebody.
On the other side of the road there is a rock with a large yellow sign on it with the inscription: “You have arrived to the Avishay group”, and with an arrow marking the way we came from.
I wonder who these group members are, where they are exactly and what their purpose is in the area.
For several months now, the expansion of the settlements has been very evident throughout the area. This time we really saw all the development.
We collected from the seamstress in this area our representative red scarves, which Raya requested, according to the secretariat’s decision.
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
MuhammadFeb-24-2026South Hebron Hill, Beit Hagai: Paving an internal security road
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