South Mount Hebron: long lines of vehicles near the checkpoints

The day following Rosh Hashanah and the closure we went to see what was happening at the checkpoints along Route 60 between Meitar Checkpoint and Hebron, and drove back along Route 317.

The parking lot at Meitar checkpoint was full as it usually is following closure.  At the Dura Al Fawwar Junction at the position near the spring there was an armed soldier with his weapon cocked.  At the junction itself work was being done to improve the road and the square.  People who had arrived early in the morning explained that there had been a roadblock and that they had been forced to wait in a long line of cars. 

At the Beit Hagai Junction at the southern entrance to Hebron there was a roadblock at the exit to Route 60 that was causing a long lineup of cars, and the soldiers were checking each car.

We continued along Route 60 to the Qilqis Junction  at the entrance to Hebron.  The road was blocked at both the entrance and the exit to the village, but the checks at the exit to Route 60 were more meticulous. All vehicles were being checked and there was an extremely long line, particularly water tankers.

We continued on to Route 356 and from there to Route 317.  The entrance to Benny Naim was open and the checkpoint was open and unmanned.  There were "Im Tirzu" signs at the entrance to Benny Naim 

While we were on the way, Abu Saffi called to complain that he had seen settlers near his water cistern near Asa'el.  We drove past the cistern, but didn’t see anything out of the ordinary.

Meanwhile, in the occupied territories the most trustworthy mode of transportation is the donkey.