According to its website, the group's aims are to monitor the behavior of soldiers and police at checkpoints; ensure that the human and civil rights of Palestinians attempting to enter Israel are protected; and record and report the results of their observations to the widest possible audience, from decision-makers to the general public.
[7] The group has also expressed concern about what they say is "the excessive Israeli response to the Al Aqsa Intifada and the prolonged closure and siege of villages and towns on the West Bank".
"[7] Machsom Watch volunteers visit the checkpoints in daily shifts of 2–4 hours, morning and afternoon, where they position themselves in proximity to the Israeli soldiers and representatives of other security bodies, so they can monitor their interaction with Palestinians.
Machsom Watch volunteers also visited Awarta following the Itamar attack in 2011, and reported on harm caused to the residents in the course of the IDF's operations, which it described as collective punishment.
A special team of volunteers helps Palestinians whom the Shin Bet have prohibited from entering Israel for the purpose of working or conducting trade, or from going abroad.
In addition, activists provide aid toward the development of the water and electricity infrastructure in villages through contacts with the District Coordination Offices in the West Bank and by submitting appeals on behalf of Palestinians whose agricultural lands have been trapped in the "Seam Zone".
Encounters and tours are also conducted with a variety of audiences, including participants in pre-military preparatory programs, kibbutz youngsters, members of youth movements, and students.
On 9 November 2004, members of Machsom Watch released a video of IDF soldiers requiring Wissam Tayam, a Palestinian violinist, to play his instrument at a checkpoint.
[12] During a two-hour meeting with members of the group in March 2006, IDF Chief of Staff Dan Halutz told the women that: "Humanitarianism is not exclusively owned by Machsom Watch and it is tested not only at the checkpoints, but also in preventing suicide bombers from reaching the markets of Tel Aviv and Netanya.
[5] In 2006, a soldier complained that Machsom Watch activists had verbally attacked him, calling him a "Nazi" and other profanities as he asked Palestinians to stand in line for an ID check at a checkpoint leading into Israel.
Life under the anomaly of an occupation regime produces strange solutions, such as the presence of women alongside soldiers in an effort to ensure a more humane routine.