Eliyahu Crossing

Etzion DCL

So after last week's phone calls there were now some improvements and some manifestations I thought we’ll never see. The good news is - we were told that the DCL issued today around 50 magnetic cards. At 11:20 the last 10 numbers for today were called and the loudspeaker announced that no more people will be accepted today. People with numbers 56-71 were sent home. The message was loud and clear and was heard by the crowd. 

And the less pleasant side: 
Fingerprint: 
It is not new that people are sent repeatedly to the DCL to renew their fingerprints, affected by various factors. This time they overdid it. A worker, who received a new magnetic card and was sent yesterday to refresh his fingerprint, was sent today to issue a new magnetic card. First they sent him to pay the 170 shekels and when he returned at 11:50 they told him that they will not handle his case today, the windows were closed... I had time to explore the issue in-depth and to understand its gravity. I cannot check the military computers but according to the worker’s brother two weeks after the renewal of the magnetic card the problem with the fingerprint began. Since he is actually a manual laborer fingerprint is not a credible or possible way of identification, since his fingers are bruised on the job. So far there is nothing new, but in the past these laborers were promised that their identification will be by other means (photo, etc.), but to this worker they offered no alternative to the biometric identification. In addition: why does one have to pay for a new magnetic card? Isn’t a payment made a year ago enough? Is it his responsibility to issue a reliable magnetic card? I brought it up with the officer in charge of Public’s Complaints of the civil administration, and they promised that they will take care of my request on Sunday. 
Medical Permits: 
1. A man whose son died of cancer and his three months old daughter is still sick and hospitalized wanted to pass to nurse her ​​in the hospital with the permit he received in the past for his son. They refused.  It took many hours for DCL and the Health Center to issue the father a new permit (he is restricted from entering Israel). The bureaucracy of occupation... 
2. A Palestinian in her early sixties was evacuated last night to Shaare Zedek Medical Center, Israel, in a fatal cardiac condition, in coordination with the Civil Administration. This morning her sons arrived at DCL to receive passing permits and permits to stay by her bedside. DCL of course asked for a letter from the hospital, although the details of the woman were at the Civil Administration for coordinating her passage. Only at 12:00 they received the letter from the hospital and at 14:00, after a conversation with the Health Center the permits were issued. Unfortunately meanwhile the mother died.... 
3. There was another case where a Palestinian was told they have a medical permit for him but he said that the soldier refused to give him the permit. The Health Center in Bethel handled the matter. 
Restricted, etc. Today there were many restricted  who came to submit forms for removal of restriction and needed help completing the applications and submitting the supporting documents. We referred them to Sylvia. There was a young man who said he has police restriction (he cannot enter Israel because of problems with the Israeli police, mostly because of non-payment of fines for parking tickets) to Israel till the year 2090!!! I wish I had an official document with these facts –it is worse than life imprisonment! More and more men, who all want to live, work and be free...