Al Nashshash, Bethlehem, Etzion DCL, Wed 17.9.08, Morning

We set to meet three people to help them with a legal case. One of them arrived and as we waited for the other two for a long while we left.
 

Rahel Checkpoint:  There has been no change during the last past weeks. The soldiers were in their posts waiting for the Palestinians to pass. It's not clear at what point the jam begins: Is it where the people enter the wall or at the inner room where the physical inspections are preformed. It probably happens in both places. What seems to be the main reason is the fact that there is just one door leading from the wall inside and that in the inspection room there aren't enough machines. This situation causes the security men great satisfaction. They have nothing to do. Those working inside the room were also working slowly. The only ones suffering were the Palestinians who miss out on plenty of work hours. The waist hours at the checkpoint, this also causes them humiliation.

Al Nashshash: After the column from which we can't pass we saw notices informing about land confiscations that were dated from July. We took photos of the notice and sent it for further investigation. It has been there since July, but perhaps….

Nabi Unis: There wasn't much traffic. There was no coffee because of the Ramadan.

We met a person who lives near Halhul, he was on his way to work at Rammla. He told us that that it takes him two hours and a half by vehicle. He is a water engineer who works for the PA and deals with water purification. Yoska and he talked about professional information and exchanged names of people in the industry with whom one can consult.

Etzion DCL: It was 9:00 AM. At eight o'clock they started handing out numbers. All those who had magnetic cards were seated out side the hall. There was a large group in the hall of people who didn't get their cards. "There were no more numbers".

Only eight people had entered. The first number was 844 and the last was 047. So what will happen with all those who won't make it? They will have to return on the following week and stand in line all over again. There has to be a solution to this.

The prolonging of the work day, adding machines that issue permits or taking the names of those who didn't manage to enter to that on the following week they would be the first, are only some of the solutions that come in mind. But perhaps there is another answer.