brown is one of the largest palestinian cities in the west bank home to over one hundred fifty thousand palestinian residents the burial place of abraham hebron is also one of the holiest sites for both islam and judaism the district is also home to the very first israeli settlement in the west bank hebron is the only palestinian city with israeli settlements inside the city limits there are four small settlements dotting the old city the settlements differ from all other settlements and that they are located in the densely populated center of a palestinian city occupying land in homes that are literally side by side with palestinian homes in one thousand nine hundred seven hebron was divided and israel took full military control over twenty percent of the city including the old city the burial place of abraham and adjacent neighborhoods is a small palestinian neighborhood in the middle of hebron the neighborhood is now fully militarized and sandwiched between two of the most violent racist settlements in the west bank teller made a settlement at the top of the hill and beit had a settlement at the base every strategy employed by israel and the oppression and control of the palestinian population as a utilized in hebron in an attempt to transfer the palestinian residents away from their ancestral homes the israeli government continues to support and expand the illegal settler presence in hebron despite the fact that many of the settlers are members of cars and kahana groups designated both in israel and the u s as terrorist organizations settlers in tel remain have spray painted many palestinian homes and businesses with racist and violent graffiti the messages are written in hebrew english in arabic the palestinian girls school quarter of a school has also been vandalized numerous times in this instance in hebrew we will get you schoolmistress death to the arabs here the settlers have marred a palestinian home with the symbol of the cock movement this graffiti on a now abandoned home and tower made a reads watch out fighting the we will rape all arab women as with many others this one and big us message is signed the jewish defense league settlers often throw trash urine and sometimes feces on palestinian property settlers also destroy palestinian families precious grape vines and olive trees countless windows in palestinian homes are broken by settlers stones and metal bars the ongoing vandalism by settlers and the subsequent cleaning and repair of these damages exacts a substantial economic burden for palestinian families as a result most palestinian homes in the neighborhood have bars and steel grating over their windows some families live behind cages built to protect themselves from constant settler attacks settlers also set fire to palestinian homes and gardens and tell remain this palestinian boy holds the kerosene soaked project which settlers threw onto his family's property in august of two thousand and five two palestinian gardens were destroyed by fires set by israeli settlers in this case five settler youth burned down a large garden soldiers eventually put the fire and then stood around and chatted with the settler youth who hung around to watch their fire burn settler adults normally just watch as settler youth attack palestinians sometimes encouraging them even directing their attacks but never doing anything to stop them here accompanied by his father you see a young settler boy attempt to stone a passing palestinian woman carrying her baby thousand and five a new palestinian family moved to teller maida situated in a house directly below the tell remained a settlement the family's home has been the target of numerous  located directly across the street from beit had a settlement cordoba school is the site of innumerable settler attacks as a result this palestinian girls school has seen its student population dwindle from two hundred to only sixty students on august thirty first two thousand and five the second settler attack of the day kept twelve palestinian teachers trapped inside quarter of a school safe entrance and exit from the school is jeopardized when israeli soldiers police and settle adults refused to stop settler youth from stoning and attacking human rights workers often must pressure soldiers to act while an attack is underway even though they are required by law to protect all people and property in the israeli controlled area of tower meda soldiers are aware that settlers are rarely investigated convicted and prosecuted even for attacks perpetrated against the soldiers themselves in this climate soldiers will often claim to be afraid of the settlers here six israeli soldiers do not manage to effectively control eleven settler youth as they throw stones at will the settler youth evade and wave off the soldiers continuing their attacks carelessly after approximately forty five minutes of unabated settler attacks with pressure from human rights workers it requires ten soldiers two police officers two members of to and five human rights workers to escort twelve palestinian teachers past the settlement settler activist organization regularly comes to tell remailer to supplement local settlers daily violence and intimidation of palestinian children in the following incident palestinian school children afraid and exhausted from continual harassment try to go home while wig members photograph them against their will human rights workers tried to shield the children twenty sixth two thousand and five in the presence of several i d f soldiers three female settler youth attacked two palestinian girls and one human rights worker the human rights worker is acting as a human shield for the palestinian girls who  on their way home from school in december of two thousand and five the israeli army erected a razor wire barrier in direct violation of a high court decision one four months before an israeli high court decision ruled that the i d f must in january two thousand and six the israeli government declared that it would remove eight settler families who had illegally taken over a palestinian wholesale market five years earlier the market is located about a five minute walk from tel r acting prime minister who would all march promised zero tolerance for settlers who opposed the eviction violently on january fourteenth two thousand and six settlers opposed to the eviction rioted intel remained in the presence of soldiers who did very little to intervene or detain them human rights workers called the police three separate times but the police did not arrive until forty five minutes later settlers kick the door of the palestinian home when the owner of the home opens the door settlers begin to try and force their way inside a human rights worker stands in front of the entrance to the home to prevent settlers from entering settlers repeatedly kick the human rights worker on the legs instead of stopping the settlers a soldier removes the human rights worker from the door of the palestinian home soldiers do not protect the entrance