'Awarta, Beit Furik, Burin (Yitzhar), Huwwara, Za'tara (Tapuah), Thu 10.9.09, Morning

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Observers: 
Esti V. and Nava A.
Sep-10-2009
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Morning

Translation:  Suzanne O.


Quiet routine: a combination of easing traffic restrictions, Ramadan and changing the clock to wintertime.


6:35 a.m. 

From Sha'ar Shomron eastwards there is a police roadblock.

The entrance to Marda is open; the barrier at Zeita is still there.

 

Za'atra/Tapuach Junction

6:55 a.m.

The roadblock from Ariel to the junction is not staffed.  On the road going up from Huwwara there is traffic but no queues.  The soldiers wave them through.  A bus waits in the car park for documents to be returned.  A van which has come from Tulkarm is directed to the car park and its passengers are moved away.  Two dog handlers give their dogs some training in the practice of searching; they go over the exercise time and again.

There is no Border Police jeep opposite the entrance to Beita.


Borin/Yitzhar
:  the roadblock is closed.

 

Huwwara

7:15 a.m. 

Since the easing of restrictions the roadblock has a slightly surrealistic look.  The car park is huge and empty, the updated pedestrian crossing is deserted and there are three primitive checkpoints for vehicles.  They do not have computers and when someone needs to be checked they have to telephone the Operations Room and the traffic backs up.  Luckily, because of the time change and Ramadan, the traffic is very light.  A dog handler is present, inspecting car after car.  It will be interesting to see where the passengers will stand when, finally, the rains arrive.

We did not come across anyone from the DCO.

 

Beit Furiq

7:40 a.m. 

The plastic barrier has been moved to its proper place - between the two lanes.  Traffic is light.  The soldiers ask: who are you?  They have never heard of us.

On the way back, glancing over at the settlement of Bracha, we see a group of buildings that, to the best of our knowledge, were not there two weeks ago.


Awarta

7:50 a.m. 

There is no queue.  Two cars who dared to infiltrate Madison Way are detained as punishment.  While we are still there another criminal is spotted.  The soldiers make haste to inform their colleagues in Huwwara but we didn't see that he was detained there.  According to the soldiers, last week a stone was thrown from a lorry that had infiltrated Madison Way at a settlers' bus. Fortunately people were only lightly wounded by splinters of glass.  Has anyone heard of such an incident?

 

Yitzhar/Borin Junction

8:00 a.m. 

A Border Police car is parked in the bay in the direction of Yitzhar but we didn't see any vehicles being stopped.

 

Za'atra

8:20 a.m. 

There is no queue and the traffic flow, with practically no inspections.