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They gathered at a roundabout on the highway heading south in a place called Beit Guvrin. Some carried flags, others carried weapons, but everyone had the same idea. A determination to stop humanitarian aid from getting to Gaza. The food and supplies go straight to Hamas, the protesters claim. "Don't give them anything, they're murderers," one woman told us.
"We're fighting Hamas and by giving this food, do you really think it doesn't go to Hamas?" asked another, disbelievingly. Their activities have become increasingly effective as protesters target aid shipments originating in neighbouring Jordan on their way to Gaza. Please use Chrome browser for a more accessible video player
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On the highway near Beit Guvrin, we saw the police move in to take positions on the roadside. But a convoy of 12 lorries, packed with humanitarian supplies, was quickly stopped in its tracks.
Some sat defiantly on the road, others danced around, holding hands. We saw police teams surround and subdue one group of agitators as another group popped up in another position.
For months, a group called Tzav 9, or Order 9 in English, has been blocking aid trucks as they make their way through Israel to a small number of crossings into Gaza. An ad-hoc coalition of residents, Jewish settlers and radical activists use WhatsApp groups to notify and coordinate their activities. They also receive intelligence by members of the security services who are sympathetic to their views, Sky News was told by Israeli officials in the area.
Read more: On Monday, protesters intercepted a convoy in Tarqumiya at the gate which links the West Bank with Israel, slashing tyres and destroying humanitarian aid. Later, a number of vehicles were set on fire. Truck drivers told Sky News the protesters' tactics took their activities to a whole new level in terms of aggression, sophistication and coordination.
Behind barbed wire, we saw some of the trucks that had been ransacked. Their contents - bags of sugar, bottles of cooking oil - were strewn all over the ground. And these supplies will not make it to Gaza. As we filmed these trucks, residents stopped to laugh and shout. "Burn their villages," one said. "Long live Israel," said another. Follow Sky News on WhatsApp Keep up with all the latest news from the UK and around the world by following Sky News Tap here
These attacks have led British Foreign Secretary Lord Cameron to call those involved "extremists", describing their actions as "appalling". The UN says there is a "full-blown famine" in the north of Gaza - and other parts of the strip are on the brink of starvation, with little to no food and fuel passing through border crossings in the last week.
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