Abu-Dis

As previously reported, the gate at Abu
Dis has been now been completely sealed off with cement blocks.
People were climbing precariously (even with babies in arms) around
the side, meeting from each side in mid-air and almost falling. A
border police jeep in the area of the gate contained one almost
apologetic young man and a female border police, both doing nothing
-- there was almost no pedestrian traffic to deal with and almost
no shops open in the whole area, which was weirdly quiet. The
border police car-hooter breaking the silence. There is still a
faint smell of tear gas from Wednesday. Fresh bread was lying in
the road on the Jerusalem side of the wall, waiting for some hours
to be picked up - 700 or more freshly baked pittas waiting for
their owner to claim them. Truly Kafkaesque.

Sawarhe: Also almost no activity - complete closure. We met a man
who had not been able to get home to Bethelehem since Thursday (2
days) even though he had a permit. At HaShayah, another place of
traffic movement and checking just below the road between Sawarhe
and Abu Dis, there was a row of cars and two buses waiting, unable
to go through. Tough situation. One person we talked to travels
each week from the North of the West Bank to work in Abu Dis ... a
daylong journey.