Hebron, Sansana, South Hebron Hills, Thu 17.4.08, Morning
6:15 - Meitar CP (Sansana)
The CP is empty on the Palestinian side. Many workers waiting on the Israeli side for their rides. But there are no cars. We try to find out why the transport hasn’t arrived. The answer one of the workers gave is that the employers thought today was the beginning of the closure
for Passover. We doubt this is the truth. On the Palestinian side a bus waits with families going to Israel to visit prisoners.
Highway 60
We travel for the first time on the new road to the settlement of Shima. All the roadblocks are in place. Very little traffic, only a few Palestinian vehicles. Why?
Samoa - Concrete barriers still in place. But at the moment there is no way to enter Samoa from highway 60.
Dura Al Fawar - open.
Sheep Junction - Army jeep on the side of the highway. Soldiers arriving to the CP and begin checking pedestrians. There are stones preventing traffic across the road, but a vehicle manages to get anyway, and the soldiers don’t react.
07:15 - Hebron
6 soldiers are standing at attention with their weapons at the ready. No explanation.
Pharmacy CP -Volunteer from the CPT is observing what is going on at the junction. We talk to him. Lots of children. They have to open their bags to show the soldiers.
Tarpat Junction: Volunteer from the CPT relates that she saw a young settler beating a Palestinian youth on the street. A policeman arrives and denies the report. We decide not to interfere since the principal of the school has been told.
Tel Rumeida: Nahal soldiers don’t pay any attention to us. But BP stops us and checks whether they are allowed to let us through. We suggest they get an order explaining that they are not to detain us every time we pass through. There seem to be more soldiers than usual, apparently sent to reinforce troops in preparation for the holiday.
Cave of the Patriarchs CP: Yossi is the commander of the post and stops to chat with us. At 9:00 one of the settlers begins blasting music from an events hall. When we explain that this is annoying to the neighbors, and there have been repeated complaints, but nothing has been done.Yossi says he can’t do anything about it.
The entire area has been decorated with garish colors. Soldiers stop everyone passing by. The soldiers tell us they are new and therefore do not know the residents yet.
9:30 Road #317
CP Bani Naim is open, Zif open.