Etzion DCL, Thu 11.7.13, Afternoon

14:15 it seems as if the Sabbath break of the DCO staff begins on Thursday afternoon and lasts until Sunday. An announcement posted at the entrance to the DCO states that it closes on  Thursday at 12 noon. A few people who arrived after 12 turned to us since they weren’t let in. They did not know the closing time because they could not read the announcement before they got to DCO so they asked us to help them to be accepted today. We tried to help but failed. They will have to come back on Sunday and miss another day of work.

A middle-aged man told us that they prevented  him from crossing the checkpoint although he has a permit to enter Israel because his fingerprints are "worn out" and the biometric device does not identify him. He works in construction and the labor blurs his fingerprints. That is why he had to renew it several times already and of course missed a few days of work. We spoke on the phone with DCO and there’s hope that on Sunday he will get a special permit.

Three young men came to get permits to visit a friend, a young man of 28, who was injured in an industrial accident and is hospitalized in critical condition at Kaplan Hospital. He was hospitalized for many months in hospitals in Israel, recently he underwent surgery and his condition has deteriorated considerably. 
Two of his family members have permits to stay with him. They are by his side day and night. Two other family members sought permits to enter Israel to help nurse him, but they are detained by GSS and can’t pass the checkpoint. The friends are asking for permits so that they could replace the two family members who are tending to him 24 hours a day. We spoke with the officer and she agreed that another person will be checked by GSS in order to get a permit.  But checking lasts about a week and there is no guarantee that the injured man will survive until then.

We left after four o'clock.