Beit Iba

Beit Iba 29.12 AMObservers: Elisheva A, Natalia A, Rina Z, Bonny R, Michalina D (reporting)8.05- 09.40 - there were three detainees, all taxi drivers who crossed the “line”. The DCO representative said they’d been there half an hour, the drivers say – an hour. They are soon joined by a fourth driver. Their papers were ostensibly taken for checking but they are actually being punished. We talked to the DCO representative about the ban on punishment at checkpoints and showed him a letter from the International Law Department of the Military Prosecutor’s office dated 12/10/2003. He was surprised and said that the orders to checkpoint commanders, at least in the area with which he is familiar, are:the commander is authoritzed to detain anynone he deems suspicious or for other reasons, for an hour. If further time is requested he can detain for another hour.If the individual is detained because of unruly conduct or some other violation of the law, the commander can ask the battalion CO’s for permission to detain the individual for a further two hours – altogether 4 hours.In this case, three of the four drivers were released at 9.25 and one was kept longer. The driver was familiar to the soldiers for consistently, daily, crossing the line, each time with a different excuse. He was apparently considered a “recidivist” and only after two hours did the DCO officer promise to talk to the commander about commuting his punishment.The problem of detention for punishment is particularly acute at Beit Iba because, due to the narrow passage and perhaps other reasons, the “line” for taxis is located so that they have to wait beyond the place where buses stop to take on passengers and thereby lose customers. The drivers claim that there is one taxi company which for some reason is permitted to cross the line.The soldiers and the DCO officer displayed a good attitude and there were no special problems. The soldiers say that despite certain relaxations of restrictions, boys aged 14-24 can go to and from Nablus only with special permits. Vehicles, including buses, go through only with special permits. They also said that people connected with the elections receive special permits. For example, the soldiers received instructions to allow free passage to candidates and their representatives with appropriate permits accompanied by their security guards, on condition that the latter are not armed. They are also supposed to permit the passage, after checking, of vehicles, including trucks, with information leaflets and equipment related to the elections, also with special permits.When we left, the fourth driver was still waiting, with two new drivers who crossed the line and another man whose papers were taken for checking as a “random check” or because he fitted a certain “profile”.On the way back – no checkpoint at Shavei Shomron; at Anavta the iron gate was locked and was not manned, as usual.