Hebron, Sansana, South Hebron Hills, Wed 15.9.10, Morning

We resumed our early morning observations.

Sansana-Meitar
Empty at 7am. On the Israeli side a bus awaited the prisoners' families. 

Route 60
Rather quiet although we noticed more military traffic than usual and additions to some of the blockades.
Dura-Alfawwar checkpoint was manned and at Bani Naim near the site of the recent attack there was a flying checkpoint that included soldiers and settlers.

Hebron 
Very quiet despite increased visibility of military personnel and vehicles. The Pharmacy and Tarpat checkpoints flowed smoothly. At Tel-Rumeida some tense soldiers checked passers by. We stopped for a chat with Abed at his shop and at the exit to Kiriat Arba, visited with the Jaber family in the village on the east side of Route 60.
This family had suffered a great deal lately by being accused by the Civil Adminsitration of stealing water and as a result their irrigation system was ripped out by the authorities. Jaber told us that last Thursday (09/09/2010) the army invaded his house and stayed there from 5pm to 8a.m. but "behaved ok" and didn't lock them in one room but allowed them to feel at home (in their own house). He showed us a note, torn from an excercise book and written in pencil, telling him to meet a Captain Eitan at the DCO in Gush Etzion. His lawyer told him to ignore the invitation, and so far there has been no follow up. Mrs Jaber talked a lot about the harrassment by settlers, including breaking into the house, cursing and beatings. There was a strange story that none of us could follow regarding the water: apparently they are waiting for permission from the Palestinian Authority to connect up their water pipes again, but the amount allocated is very small indeed. Rabbis for Human Rights are dealing with the situation and all the relevant bodies are aware of the problem - although with no concrete results at the moment. In spite of our helplessness, we felt that the meetings with the Jabers and Abed were positive because they dispel some of the isolation of people who feel their lives and property are considered worthless. Incdentally, from the Jaber house you can see the hill to the north of Kiryat Arba where a new caravan has appeared. According to Jaber there are four, replacing the ones recently removed.