Etzion DCL

We reached DCL at half-past-ten after Shlomit visited her friend and wished a happy holiday at Nabi Daniel...It’s enough to leave the road to Yehudit and travel the dozens of yards to the Palestinian village of what was once perhaps a narrow, paved road, and is now nothing but a bumpy ride on potholes and pits leading to the stone checkpoint from which you can’t even see the village. There weren’t many cars and at DCL we met two people, one was investigated by GSS and his friend who was waiting to be called in.

Slowly two more were added to the GSS interrogation. One came for a magnetic card renewal and toward noon more people arrived badly wanting to get permits for holiday visits. They were sent to the closed Palestinian DCL. The officers who answered my phone call said they will not give visiting permits today. We tried to find out if the people   filed applications previously and were denied? Or why they arrived at the last minute to the Israeli DCL? It was surreal to see around ten people arriving on Holiday’s eve to the Israeli DCL asking for permits to visit relatives in Jerusalem or in Israel for the holiday and being denied.

Two GSS prevented were sent to Sylvia. Today's incident was of a man from Jerusalem and this is his story: 
“I was driving in my car on Route 60, and at the intersection in Hebron area I realized the car had a problem, I stopped by some peddlers selling fruit and vegetables on the road and got a ride to a gas station to get oil for the car. When I returned the place was deserted and my car was not there. I was told that Civil Administration inspectors came to expel the peddlers who put the fruits and vegetables in my car in order to avoid fines and confiscation. (Which it seems did not help them). Tomorrow is Eid al-Fitr Holiday and I won’t be able to take my kids anywhere”. We did our best to submit a letter to the Supervisor to try and release the car. At ten minutes to one the DCL commander informed me that there is no way to speed up anything, a letter of appeal was received at the Civil Administration and will be handled within a week. In the meantime the country will enjoy a few thousand shekels for “keeping” the car in the fenced car area of the DCL. After all, throughout this time they have to feed and water the car, and one has to cover the costs of this hospitality.  
There were no other major dramas - occupation like occupation meddles with the life of every Palestinian, even if he has a blue ID card of an Israeli resident. At one time or another occupation disrupts his plans… This time if the man would not be able to rent a car they will have to stay home for the Holyday.