'Anabta, Beit Furik, Beit Iba, Huwwara, Za'tara (Tapuah), Tue 8.12.09, Morning

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Observers: 
Edna K., Shira V., and Elinor D. (reporting)
Dec-8-2009
|
Morning

Translation:  Suzanne O.

 

Za'atra

7:30 a.m. 

We met a detained youngster, both our impressive Arabic speakers Edna and Shira, conversed with him and he said that he had been told to wait for 3 hours (!!), in spite of which he was relaxed and smiling, thus we were not sure that we had actually understood the situation correctly.  We waited a few minutes and the boy got his papers back and left.

 

Huwwara

7.50 a.m. 

All in all the traffic moves freely, 2 vehicles were detained on the Israeli side, the Mercedes was released after about 5 minutes and the other vehicle detained with it had still not been released when we left.  The soldiers did not approach us, for a change, did not check us, and did not comment or ask questions when we showed Shira the old roadblock.

 

Beit Furiq

8.04 a.m. 

For some reason there are no soldiers at all there.  We asked a Palestinian driver what had happened and he said that is how it is the whole time, sometimes they are there and sometimes not...

 

A rolling checkpoint in Huwwara village

10:25 a.m. 

On our way back in the direction of Beit Iba we saw a military jeep with soldiers and a number of taxis and Palestinian vehicles held up at the side of the main road of Huwwara, close to the centre.  We stopped and went over to find out what was going on.  The soldiers were young and not particularly pleasant.  They told us it is a rolling checkpoint and that we are interfering with their work, and asked us to move away.  We took up an observation position a little way off, and stayed there for half an hour.  The Palestinians in the vehicles which were held up when we arrived told us that they had been waiting for about 30 minutes.  From the moment we arrived no vehicles waited 30 minutes for the unusual inspection.  Each vehicle was required to give all the ID documents of their passengers for a long inspection, and when this was completed the vehicles were released.  As usual, the Palestinians are not in control of their time, this is in the hands of the occupying force.  People on their way to work, a father and daughter returning from surgery that the girl had undergone, sick people and so on, were in these vehicles.

 

Beit Iba

11:10 a.m. 

Relaxed and friendly reservists are at the roadblock and do not hold anyone up.  So relaxed that they let us in... obviously we turned around and came back.

Anabta

11:20 a.m. 

No vehicles are detained.