Morning

When we arrived we met only some service car drivers telling us that there was a curfew and nobody could pass. There were no soldiers or border police around. High concret blocks stood along the plot of the mosque. We were told us that there would be a curfew. The few people who wanted to pass at that time, even with blue ID's, got refused, among them a young man, who told us, that he came from his work from the railroad construction and wanted to go home to sleep. We asked for his passage in presence of this man and got refused too.About 7 a.m. more people arrived from the Abu-Dis side, in particular many schoolchildren. The soldiers, meanwhile standing on a block inside the path refused. I got suspicious if there would be really a curfew and called for advice. The recommendationwas to call the officer. We did, he said he could tell us in half an hour if a curfew was valid. 5 minutes later at least the schoolchildren and those with blue ID's could pass, also some older people without control. They did not allow a nurse on her way to work having an orange ID with a valid permit to pass through. On our way back to the gasoline station a soldier turned to us, saying that if we wanted to criticize them or to invervene we should not do this in front of the Palestinian public, but taking the soldier aside. My commentary: I think he is right. We should (if possible) not hit their self respect.