includin Hebron Rd. in Jerusalem

Abu-Dis Wednesday PM, 24.11.04Observers: TB, IH, LS, DG (reporting)Sawahre – 15:30: Long lines of cars in both directions and many pedestrians waiting before the southbound turnstiles. Everything was at a standstill till the change of BP shifts. Once that was accomplished, traffic moved quickly and so did the pedestrians. 5 young men were held up (at random) for ID inspection, which took about 15 minutes. A transit was detained for inspection by a dog who seemed more interested in the other dogs around than in the vehicle. The passengers had to get out so the dog could sniff the car (to detect explosives), and they were made to stand in a row some meters away. Then their belongings were taken out of the car (but not opened) and the dog was made to sniff them as well. One of the two soldier girls responsible for the dog was cooperative and explained that the dog sniffing was instead of opening people’s bags and parcels.Abu-Dis – 16:30: The monastery gate is locked, so the resilient Palestinians broke down the wall surrounding the monastery in two more places, one easier to climb through than the other. A relatively large number of men, women and children pass freely. No BP since morning, and ironically enough this opening in the wall is easier to use than the former “Gate” (Pishpash).Hebron Rd. in Jerusalem – 15:30: Like last week, some 15 men and women who had been taken off a bus headed towards Bethlehem, were detained at a temporary CP. This time it was in a different spot on Hebron Rd., but the drill was the same: those who did not have permits for entering Jerusalem but had managed to do so anyway, had to have their IDs checked. Once it was established that they were not on any “wanted” list, they were set free to find alternative means of transportation out of Jerusalem. It took about an hour. The BP soldiers were willing to make conversation with us and give explanations. The soldier girl complained we were one sided and saw things only from the point of view of the “other side” and the man wanted to know what our organization was all about