Etzion DCL, Mon 5.9.11, Afternoon

14:25,  Etzion DCL:   unusual shift. Twenty-seven people were waiting in the hall when we arrived, and about 30 waited within. All entered and were taken care of by the time the DCL closed at 17:00!  No one was sent home without being taken care of, and no one will have to come again next Monday. This rare success almost made us forget that most of the people were taken care of only after they’d waited there 7 or 8 hours.
Three agricultural workers employed in Israel approached us; their entry permits had been taken from them at Tarqumiyya with no explanation. They wanted the permits returned, but after waiting a long time at the DCL they were told they had to go to Hebron. They complained bitterly about losing days of work.  “I have 14 children,” one said.

A young woman married to an Israeli wanted to move to Israel and was refused. A man whose wife had given birth in Jerusalem wanted entry permits for his mother and sister to visit her.  They were refused because only first-degree relatives are permitted to visit family members hospitalized in Israel.

A young man approached us saying that he wanted to renew his magnetic card, and paid the required fee, NIS 40, for stamps to be affixed to the card. But the soldier erred, and instead of renewing the old card, issued a new one and wanted him to add NIS 45 worth of stamps. In other words:  he was asked to pay for the soldiers’ mistake. We made calls trying to help but weren’t successful. The dejected man was standing near us when closing time came. An officer came over, a lieutenant we didn’t know, to lock the hall. We described the problem to him.  The officer was cordial and friendly, brought the man inside and soon he received the renewed card without paying extra.