6:50 AM, Bethlehem Checkpoint: four checking stations open. Checking is fast and smooth. The lines are short, but there are still many people waiting to enter at Bethlehem. No one has difficulty with the hand check machine. The commander, S, comes to us, shaking hands, full of smiles, and ready to chat! He says this morning one of the "sleeves" (sharvolim) is not working; therefore the slow down. Another cause of a slowdown is when there is an alert, the checking is more exact. The answer to my question about to whom the soldiers are speaking to on the telephone while they check people entering is that they may be getting instruction or speaking privately.
As we leave the CP on highway 60 there are about twenty trucks filled with building material waiting to be checked and continuing into Israel back to back.
7:40 AM, Etzion DCL: about forty people waiting. At exactly 8:00 am the door was opened, a woman entered first, and then the rest according to their own list. Four men asked us for help with getting a magnetic card.
8:20 AM, Nabi Yunis: a flying CP was checking vehicles exiting from Halhul. We discussed with the owners of the fruit and vegetable stand and coffee stand the order they received about the removal of those structures. The orders will be faxed to the committee which works against this.