Falamiya North Checkpoint (914), Falamiya South Checkpoint (935), Habla Checkpoint (1393)

Falamiya North 914

Opening Hours 05:30 – 06:10

These are the new opening hours of the CP.  We arrived too late, at 06:15, and the CP was already closed. A tractor, who didn’t know about the change in the opening hours,  arrived at the same time as we did, and there was a car there, whose excited owner had arrived when the CP was being closed, according to him at 06:05, and wasn’t allowed to pass. We all drove to Palamiye South.

Falamiya South (Jayyus West) CP 935

Opening hours 06:20-06:45

These too are new opening hours. All the opening hours at all the checkpoints should be checked. At the DCO they told us that they changed to winter time, the olive picking hours were not in force anymore.

06:25 The soldiers have already arrived. The man who did not make it at the northern CP arrived before us, but he does not have an authorization to pass by this gate, as he is from Kafr Jimel, and the soldier do not allow him to pass. He argues with them – to no avail. Nina too does her best to help him and contacts the DCO (who tries to help). But the commander (probably the Passages officer) does not give his authorization. Nothing helps and the man is obliged to turn round and drive back. He lost at least half a working day. As if something would have happened if he would have passed.After all he could, after passing by CP 914, pass through the fields and arrive at CP 935 or vice versa.  Therefore there is no security matter here, just  imperviousness of the soldiers

In  the meantime a tractor with two elderly women passed, a car and a tractor with 7 people. While those were still standing in the queue to get the authorization from the soldiers, two tractors arrived with about 20 passengers, including small children of about three years. Then came another tractor with 2 passengers. Everybody is still picking olives.

Two girl soldiers approached us and claimed we had not right to stay here as this is a ‘red’ area. What is a red area – they were unable to tell us. Probably A Zone. We tried to explain to them that is was the C Zone, and we even wanted to show them the map, but they were adamant. We know and don’t need to see a map! We argued with them and suggested they call the police. But we won’t wait for the police.

06:45 The gate was closed and we drove away. We checked the maps again – Indeed C Zone.

07:10 On our way, at the entrance to Azun, there was a unit of soldiers checking part of the cars and the passengers on their way out. At the entrance there were no soldiers.

Habla CP 1393

Opening Hours 06:30-08:00

07:25 On our way to the CP we saw the lady-teachers minibus going out in the direction of the seamline zone, to Arab Ramadin, and at the same time the bus with the girl students from Arab Ramadin passing on to Habla from the seamline zone. The queue of the pedestrians on their way out to the plant nurseries was long and the tempo of their advance slower than usual. The persons coming out were girding their belts, which is not a usual procedure at the CP. At the head of the CP crew this time there was a woman officer, a captain. A young tough woman conducting the affair aggressively. One of the persons passing from Habla to the seamline zone stopped outside the gate and waited for somebody ad she asked him tensely what he was waiting for and when he answered her signaled to him to proceed and not to way – ‘he will come’, she said. She  reads out to the soldiers in the shed the identity numbers of the drivers, and they check them on the computer. The passage is very slow, so slow that a traffic jam was created inside the CP. A young man who passed told us very excitedly that he and his brother have a business and each has a car registered on the name of one of them, but they don't bother always to drive the car that is registered on their name. She allowed them to pass this time although the vehicle wasn’t registered on the name of the driver, but warned: ‘the last time’.

08:00 It is impossible to lock the CP at closing time because of the ongoing checks and the bureaucracy. Part of the pedestrians haven’t passed yet and there are cars waiting. A big tender with plants is delayed from the same reason: the driver is not registered as the owner of the car. It turned out that the registered driver is on leave of something and another driver from the plant nursery is meant to pass the vehicle which is loaded with plants. But the woman officer doesn’t concede and insists that only the person registered as the car owner is allowed to drive the car. This was not a usual procedure here. The registered driver is summoned by phone to come and show his papers and he arrives a few minutes after the closure time of the CP. Luckily there were some persons passing, and the CP wasn’t closed in his face.

08:10 There are still a few pedestrians. The gate from Habla was closed for car traffic. The driver on whose name the car was registered arrives and passes with the car. The other driver passes on foot. The last people pass by the gate and it is closed.

08:15 We left.

08:30 At Azun, with Z. Nina hands him various things to sell in his shop. There were not more soldiers at the entrance to the village.