Habla

Habla, ‘Azzun, Eliyahu checkpoint, 

Opening hours of the checkpoint:

Abu Salman:  from 05:55 - 06:15

Habla:  from 6:20 - 07:30

06:15  Habla

The gate is closed.  From afar it is possible to see that from the side of the village there is movement of people, probably waiting in the yellow "container".

At 06:20, the soldiers and officers arrive and the inspection booth is opened.  The  first four people get out only at 06:30.  After them, they enter by fives, are checked and exit, but, despite the apparent order, the inspections are carried out lazily.

Meanwhile, many more arrive and the line lengthens until one can't see the end.  We guess that on the side of the village about 40 people are waiting.  We get answers from one of the soldiers.  He also politely gave me a warning when he sees I am photographing;  it can also be done that way.

At Abu Salman he says that they don't permit the owner of a flock to go through the checkpoint – a decree of the highest order.  There were complaints that he had set his flock to grazing in areas not belonging to him and that the Palestinians, in general, leave the village with a small flock and return with a big one.  No less!  From whom are they supposed to steal sheep?  From the settlers?

Workers who had been going through by foot at ‘Azzun ‘Atma are going through the Shomron checkpoint today.  We decided to check, on our next shift, where the pedestrian passage is at the checkpoint.

07:00  A number of horse-drawn wagons go through, and a van from the nursery.  Since Palestinians keep coming, the line does not shorten. It is annoyingly slow.  The inspections could be done faster which would allow people to get to work on time.

07:15  The nursery and the vegetable shops are still closed.

At the entrance to ‘Azzun there is a military vehicle.  We travel to the home of Z. to unload the packages we brought for him.

At the Eliyahu checkpoint, at the entrance and at the exit, both in the morning and in the evening traffic flows with no delays.