Abu Dis, Container (Wadi Nar), Ras Abu Sbitan (Olive Terminal), Sheikh Saed, Tue 27.1.09, Morning

07:10 Sheikh Saed

 

Lively traffic is flowing.  Some school children are asked to open their bags for checks.

 

08:20 Zeitim Crossing

We entered the checkpoint area.  Two corridors are active, 10 persons waiting in each.  A young woman standing in line for the DCO presents herself as an eye doctor from Jericho who also works in one of the hospitals in the centre of the country (Tel Hashomer? but I may be wrong).  She tells us that each time there are problems with her biometric readings, and each time she has to pass through the DCO and explain her problem in order to cross.  She added that the checkpoint commander knows her problem.  We called him, and he confirmed.  He suggested she visit the Jericho DCO to acquire an exemption from the biometric.  Simultaneously, he sent his deputy, G., who arranged her crossing within minutes.

09:00 Wadi Nar

Traffic flows.  When we arrived we witnessed  the release of 2 detained vehicles.  A few others were detained and released within a short time.

09:40 Az-za'ayyem

No detained Palestinian vehicles in sight.  We stopped to talk to a civilian guard, there to look into the matter of the crossing of Palestinian buses.  According to him, there are a few bus routes crossing at this checkpoint (36, 63, and 75 which arrives, he said, once every hour).  Only holders of blue ID's are allowed to cross on them.  He also told us that taxis arriving from Allenby bridge cross the checkpoint with their passengers (blue ID's it seems).  He couldn't tell where other Palestinian bus routes were directed.