Huwwara, Tue 24.2.09, Morning

Translator:  Charles K.

We arrived after 8:00 and, as expected, and like most of our recent shifts at Huwwara, this one also passed quietly and without any unusual incidents.

The soldiers behaved politely and courteously to us.  (They didn't even make us remain 50 meters away from the checkpoint exit.)  We moved around freely and observed from every location.

(A soldier at the vehicle checkpoint asked us to move a little.  We did so without understanding why it made a difference; we saw equally well.)

No soldier (male or female) raised their voice, and the rate at which the line moved was definitely reasonable, with no delays.  There were no people who had been arrested or detained in any of the "pens."

We spent most of our time there talking with the locals.  Nothing's new.  The market is slowly returning to life, we bought a beigel, there are soft-drink stands, the youth with the candy moves around as usual.  There are still no fruits and vegetables - who knows, maybe they'll also reappear.  No one understands who they bothered, and no one knows when the prohibition will be lifted.

The same very justified complaints were heard, about the lack of toilets and drinking water.

Despite all that, no one should imagine, God forbid, that the situation is good.  No!  The people going through still have to remove belts, expose their belly and "dance" the "checkpoint dance."

There were about 15 cars on line at the Za'tara junction, that advanced at a reasonable rate.  A bus was parked in the plaza and all its passengers had to get off and waited next to it.  (Lucky that it wasn't really cold; the day was pretty springlike.) 

We hope that the information that we've heard recently is true, that the checkpoint will be dismantled.  (By the way, immediately after the new "terminal" was inaugurated, the DCO representative told us that it will soon be dismantled...!!!)