Hebron, South Hebron Hills, Wed 20.3.13, Morning

Translator:  Charles K.

Southern Hebron Hills

We went through the Meitar checkpoint at 10:30, toward Umm Faqra on Highway 317 which is deserted.  On the way we saw settlers hanging a very large sign at Carmel:  The new neighborhood will be built here soon (for Obama’s visit?).  The roads are empty all the way to Hebron.

Hebron

Two serious incidents in Hebron, at the Cave of the Patriarchs checkpoint:

A settler throws coffee at a Palestinian and flees.  The Palestinian starts chasing him, and in response to shouts from the settlers the soldiers chase the Palestinian and politely ask him to calm down.  The Palestinian then approaches the soldier to explain what happened, the soldier apologizes, says he didn’t see the settler throwing coffee, and that’s why he simply tried to calm things down.

A settler in a white car sped past the checkpoint and hit a 4 year old Palestinian boy, injuring his right leg.  We called the police; by the time they arrived (in 3-5 minutes) a paramedic had recommended an x-ray.  The police officer handled matters politely and conscientiously; he contacted the Red Crescent to continue treatment.

Since no one had recorded the license number of the car the police will examine security camera recordings at the time of the incident to identify the vehicle’s owner.

‘Abed is worried about the difficult economic situation, and about Abu Mazen who isn’t looking out for his people, and about Hamas creating tensions.