Abu Dis, Container (Wadi Nar), Tue 15.4.08, Afternoon
Wadi Nar
The temperature was hot, and the tempers were reaching to explosive heights. Rina and I wanted to talk to A. The border police officer who is the liaison from the DCL.
We wanted him to be aware that when he disappeared the soldiers got very nervous, and raised their guns, at all the passing cars. They created long lines of cars, and simply didn't let them pass, or kept some cars for long periods.
Most traffic was stopped. When we arrived at Wadi Nar yesterday, A. wasn't there. There were 3 taxi's stopped, going to Bethlehem, and 6 taxi's stopped, going to Abu Dis. In one of the taxi"s going to Abu Dis, there was a man who had just been released from a hospital in Bethlehem, after eye surgery, and in another taxi there was a man who needed to go to the hospital in Ramallah. Both had legitimate papers .
Eventually, more taxi's joined the stopped ones, and there were 10, going to Abu Dis. The officer on duty said they could keep them for 40 minutes. It was more than 2 and a half hours, when the elderly man who had eye surgery ( 78 years old) ,and who had to urinate, in public ,because he couldn't walk far enough to hide himself, was able to go on his way.
We were helpless, since the telephone numbers we were given in February, are obsolete None of them were relevant. Please give us numbers to call who can help , in such a situation.
We were totally impudent, and unable to help all these people, who were looking at us for help. There must have been up to 80 to 100 people at that machsom, for hours, in that sweltering sun. No reasons were ever given for keeping the cars for so long.