Masafer Yatta
Masafer Yatta | |
|---|---|
| Arabic transcription(s) | |
| • Arabic | مسافر يطا |
| • Latin | Mosfaret Yatta (official) |
| Coordinates: 31°22′48″N 35°10′51″E / 31.38000°N 35.18083°E | |
| State | Palestine |
| Governorate | Hebron Governorate |
| Government | |
| • Type | village council |
| Area | |
• Total | 36.0 km2 (13.9 sq mi) |
| Population (2007) | |
• Total | 768 |
| • Density | 21.3/km2 (55.3/sq mi) |
| Name meaning | "Traveling" or "Nothing" |
Masafer Yatta (Arabic: مسافر يطا, also spelled Mosfaret Yatta) is a collection of 19 Palestinian hamlets which comprise a D-level municipality in the southern West Bank, in the Hebron Governorate of Palestine, located between 14 and 24 kilometres (9–15 mi) south of the city of Hebron, in the South Hebron Hills.
It has been subject to being within an Israeli-declared military "firing zone" since the 1970s. The name Masafer is believed to derive from the Arabic words for 'traveling', in light of the distance needed to travel from Yatta, or 'nothing' in light of the local belief that "nothing" would be able to live in the area. The 2024 documentary film No Other Land, winner of the Best Documentary Oscar, focuses on Masafer Yatta.