'Anin, Reihan, Shaked, Mon 16.8.10, Morning

Bracha B.A.

 06:05 – A'anin Checkpoint
No more than 20 people – some on a tractor – are waiting to cross.  There were additional requests for permits but no more have been issued.  The routine is the same.  People are checked quickly. A soldier greets everyone politely with "good morning" and asks about the Ramadan fast.  A young man is standing next to the inspection booth, waiting for an answer from the Liaison and Coordination Administration.  He asked for a new permit but it has not been received and in the end he’s been sent home.  Why is it his fault that the request has not yet been received because of bureaucracy?  He has land and wants to go to work.  Who are these people who prevent him from going to work his own land?

06:45 – Reihan Barta'a Checkpoint
The checkpoint is quiet.  At this hour the heat is already oppressive.  Only a few people are arriving – either because of the heat or because of Ramadan.  People return bleary – eyed from the night shift at Shahak.  A carton of eggs has been under the shed for a long time.  A driver expecting nothing to happen is washing a yellow van.  Tenders are being checked and drivers sit in the shade on the other side.  The intense heat is having an impact on everyone.  We meet M., who tells us about the kindergarten in the area.  He drives the children and hopes for the best.

06:55 – Shaked Tura Checkpoint
Soldiers arrive to open the checkpoint at 07:00 and after about 10 minutes all the gates are open.  More people are coming from the West Bank than in the opposite direction.  Passage is orderly and fast.  Two "Hummers arrive via the security road and join the half dozen soldiers who are already there  .About 20 people and a herd of goats are waiting to cross.  A woman arrives with a grandmother who proudly shows us a five–days-old infant.  We are told about a soldier from Gilad who is the commander that was involved in harassing the Bedouin.  The local people tell us that he speaks rudely to them and has been abusive.  "Evidently he thinks he is still in Russia."

We left at 07:30.