Huwwara north & south

HuwwaraThu. 6.1.05 AMObservers: Tal B, Naomi L, Tal-Li B (reporting)7:00 – Zaatra junction: 5 vehicles in an easterly direction and 22 (!!!) going south, including two trucks.7:20 – several hundred meters before Huwwara checkpoint there is a turnoff to the left to Asira,Budin and Madama. Beyond it is an improvised checkpoint constructed out of stones on the road. A minibus driver which takes teacher to the village school says he’s been waiting more than an hour, and the teachers need to reach school by 7:30. We call up the DCO who promise to deal with the matter but then, about 10m minutes after our arrival the bus is let through almost without a check. So why was it detained for so long?At the south and north checkpoints traffic is flowing; nobody is waiting and there are no detainees (during our watch there was only one detainee at the south checkpoint for a short time). The x-ray truck at the north checkpoint forces people to step off the road in order to go around it, thereby treading through slippery mud. The 2nd Lieutenant in charge of the checkpoint, at our request, asks the driver to shift his vehicle. He asks us sarcastically to spread the word that there is no checkpoint so that the wanted men will come and he can catch them.. At the same time, he is pleasant and considerate towards both the Palestinians and the soldiers.From 9:30 on representatives of the media begin to arrive on their way into Nablus to film Abu Mazan’s speech at an-Najah at 11:00. There is some confusion as to the instructions for entry of media. We gather that all holders of valid press cards for 2004 and 2005 are free to enter till 16/1. A group of reporters are detained for a brief time until the instructions are checked with the army spokesman’s office.A team from Channel 1 film at the checkpoint for a story for Friday’s newsreel and intrerview Tal.10:50 – Abu Mazen’s convoy went by and we left.