Beit Furik, Eliyahu Crossing, Habla, Huwwara, Shomron Crossing, Za'tara (Tapuah), Sun 4.8.13, Morning
10:00 We entered the Palestinian territories through the Shomron Gate. There were no problems there. Along the road we pointed out the villages and the Barkan Industrial Area, and discussed among us the BDS campaign and the EU decision.
We drove through Ariel to give our guests a view of this West Bank Jewish town. We saw where a new neighborhood is being built on a further ridge.
Za'atra (Tapuach Junction). There were several military vehicles in the central area, but we didn't see any soldiers or any actions. The junction was quiet and the traffic was moving smoothly.
In Huwwara we realized that this week we would not eat falafel - Ramadan. At Huwwara checkpoint the only difference was that the entrance and exit of the large parking lot is blocked with razor-wire. Is the IOF afraid that the Palestinians will "settle" in the parking lot??!! The traffic into and out of Nablus was moving smoothly.
We drove past the Beit Furiq checkpoint which was empty and went on to the road to Beit Dajan. This time we didn't meet any herds going to graze. The valley was very quiet and a deep yellow color. We pointed out the settlement, Itamar, on the ridge above Beit Furiq and Awarta. From the valley Awarta isn't visible so we drove through the village. We discussed with our guests the differences between a village like Awarta, and a town like Huwarra.
We drove past Qedummim, and talked about D. Weiss and the "Tag Mechir" gangs. At the Eliyahu Gate the young woman on duty asked us questions and they checked the ID's of our guests, Miriam (from the USA) and Martin (from the Netherlands). We then drove to the Habla gate and explained the reason for this obstacle. We ended our tour with some puchases at the plant nursery.