Ma'on () is an Israeli settlement organized as a moshav shitufi in the West Bank. Located in the Judean Hills south of Hebron and north of Beersheba, it falls under the jurisdiction of Har Hevron Regional Council. In , it had a population of . The international community considers Israeli settlements in the West Bank illegal under international law, but the Israeli and US governments dispute this. Etymology The word 'Ma'on' in Hebrew means 'dwelling'. It refers to a biblical village said to stand on the borderlands of the desert, in the highlands of Judah, which is mentioned in Joshua , identified in modern times with Khirbet Ma'in, about 3 km to the west. Geography Ma'on is located in the southern Judean Hills at about 863 m above sea level. History The Arab village of Ma'in was a conical settlement on a hill, 1.25 kilometres south of Carmel, and 3 kilometres east of Susiya, with the ruins of a castle still visible, and cisterns, lying about 9 miles south south east of Hebron. The Israeli outpost was first established in 1981 as a paramilitary Nahal outpost. It is located on one side of the main road between At-Tuwani and Tuba, east of At-Tuwani. The first civilian population, members of the Orthodox Zionist youth movement Bnei Akiva settled there in 1982. Settlement expansion In 2001, Jewish settlers established the outpost Havat Ma'on (also named Hill 833 or Tel Abu Jundiya) on the other side of the main road, appropriating privately owned Palestinian land. According to a local Palestinian, by setting up the illegal outpost, the road from the nearby village of Tuba to At-Tuwani was cut off. The effect on Palestinian children attending school, who were subject to frequent stoning from the residents of Havat Maon, was to constrain them to abandon the short road to take a detour that increased the distance to school from 3 to 20 kilometers. In 2003, settlers took over Palestinian land near the road, which was abandoned due to ongoing settlers attacks; on 25 December, several new outposts were set up. The children were protected from harassment first by a group from Christian Peacemaker Team and then the Israeli army, which however has a record of turning up late. In 2005/2006, the settlers expanded a chicken farm south of Hill 833. In 2008, the location was fenced, impeding vehicular traffic on the road. In 2009,