Tayasir

Translated Dvora K.

A cold rainy day.

Summary:

The person responsible for security in the settlement of Maskiyot continues to make trouble for the residents in the area, in collaboration with military units serving in the region. Last week there were two incidents in which he initiated the illegal arrest of shepherds for 4-5 hours, and soldiers actually carried it out. In both cases they did not call the police, and that's proof that there was no legal reason for the deed. After 'the punishment was applied in full', the shepherds were freed to go home.

We heard complaints about unnecessary delays at the Tyasir CP. We ourselves saw an eight-minute halt in which no vehicle could go through the CP; there was no apparent reason for this. This was after we had left the CP and stopped to observe from a distance.

Gochiya Gate again was not opened until 15:45.

Tapuach Junction–11.25

There are no inspections. Near the guard tower that overlooks the road before Ossrin, a military vehicle is parked

Kussara

We met a man who told us that the Palestinian police are pursuing him, claiming that he is a collaborator [with Israel]. He was arrested several times and has spent time in jail. That is why he is having a hard time earning a livelihood for his family. His brother was killed by the Palestinian Authorities because he too was accused of collaboration. At the entrance to Kussara there is a  second hand goods store, for which the name 'second hand' is too grand. The items for sale are terribly ragged things that somebody has brought from the flee market in Jaffe and sells here.

Ma'aleh Efraim – 12.10:

There is no inspection. A military vehicle is parked near the CP. We did not see any inspections on our way back either.

Hamra CP – 12.30

A white Brinks van is parked near the CP and bars the left lane. When we returned it was still parked there in the same place. While we stayed there was a steady stream of people and cars in the usual speed. The passengers get out of the cars which come from the west, go through the pedestrian CP and wait for their vehicles in the cold rain for several minutes. Every time they refurbished the CP, no one has thoughtto have consideration for the thousands of people who go through the CP daily, whether they wish to or not, and must wait in the cold and in the rain in winter, and in the terrible heat of the summer.

The vehicles that come from the east, from the direction of area A, are not inspected.

In the encampment opposite Maskiyot: three weeks ago we talked with a shepherd who's been arrested illegally by R., the security person from Maskiyot, who was helped by a group of soldiers who actually carried out the arrest. This was done with the excuse that he'd come too close to the settlement fence with his herd. The shepherd was held in the CP for three hours, and then released.

Last Friday, he was arrested again. In the middle of the day he was taken from his herd which was left without anybody to watch it, for four hours.

In another encampment we were told about another case of a shepherd taken to the Tyasir CP – again on the initiative of R., who called on the army to make the arrest. The shepherd phoned N. from the Association for Human Rights. She arrived at the Tyasir CP but he was taken to the Hamra CP with the claim that he doesn't have an ID card and was kept there for five hoursa lltogether. In the end, he was released and no complaint was submitted to the police.

The same woman from the Association for Human Rights is calling a meeting of the Bedouin who live in the area in order to explain to them what their rights are and how they can fight for them. We appealed to the organization 'Yesh Din' ['There is Law'] after we received the agreement of the people involved to put in a complaint.

Tyasir CP – 13:50

When we arrived at the CP it was empty of cars. During the time we were there a few cars went through at the usual speed.

14:20– Three cars have already been waiting for five minutes and not a single one goes through. Only after an unexplained pause of eight minutes did the traffic begin to move.

Before this the residents of the encampments, who have to go through the CP regularly, told us that there are long delays to get to the urban center of Tubas . Somebody told us that yesterday at 10:00, not a rush hour for traffic, he's waited at the CP for about an hour, on a tractor open to the wind and the cold.

Guchiya Gate – 15:10

The gate is closed. We rang Zaharan at the Jericho DCO every ten minutes. He spoke with the person responsible for sending the soldiers to open the gate. They told him that the soldiers had been sent there, but none arrived. Those who needed to go through the gate did not get there either, because they knew it would not be opened.

Translator:  Charles K.

We pass through the area of the Za’tara checkpoint before 3 AM.  It’s completely deserted, no soldiers in position, just a light in the guard tower.

We go through the Ma’aleh Efraim checkpoint before 3:30 AM.  It’s also empty.

We pass by the Hamra checkpoint at about 3:45 AM.  No cars, no people; soldiers at the checkpoint.

4:05-5:45  Tayasir checkpoint

No people or cars at the checkpoint before 4:15.  Soldiers are at the vehicle checkpoint and the location where documents are checked up the hill above the road.  They didn’t object to our standing very close to each of those places.

The first car appears at 4:15 AM, then a minibus, then additional cars gradually arrive between 4:30-4:45, transporting laborers to their jobs at various locations, from Ro’i and Na’ama to Beit Ha’arava.

The inspection proceeds very slowly, 3-5 minutes per person, even though they’re only checking documents and the soldier in the booth has continual access to a computer.  The minibus driver waited from 4:20 to 5:40 for his passengers, and during this hour nine cars waited for their passengers.  People who have to begin work at Beit Ha’arava at 6 AM, for example, won’t get there on time.

We asked the shift commander why things are so slow, but he didn’t provide any explanation.  We telephoned the army’s “humanitarian office” who said there had been an infiltration attempt during the night so the roads are jammed.  An answer which is completely irrelevant to the situation at this checkpoint.

People told us that at this time of year, particularly during the coming month, there’s not much work, and most of it is in tomatoes.  The pay is still poor and the employers still avoid their legal obligations to their workers.  The people say that heads of families who have no supplementary source of food such as goats, chickens or a vegetable plot will have great difficulty surviving on that income, which also depends somewhat on the season.  Everyone – laborers and drivers – complained about how slow the Tayasir crossing was, both early in the morning and when they return in the afternoon.  Some said that it’s worse when religious soldiers are stationed there.

6:10-6:50  Hamra checkpoint

There are usually very few people here at this hour.  Today it was filled with people and cars.  38 vehicles waited for their passengers.  Some 200-250 people waited on a very long line behind the checkpoint buildings, many of whom had been there since 4:30 AM.  There were always 7-8 people in the building where detainees are held, waiting a long time for their names to be called and replaced by others.  Some went on to their jobs; others were turned back.  During the time we were there we counted 11 people who weren’t allowed through the checkpoint and went back.  Two of the detainees were there during our entire stay.

The line only started to get shorter quickly as 7 AM approached, people coming through in groups of three and four, much more rapidly.  Most of the vehicles had left by 7 with their passengers.

Teachers, most of whom work in Jericho, the Jiftlik and the school not far from the checkpoint, arrived slightly before 7.  They told us they cross quickly so as not to be late for school.  They, as well as others at both checkpoints, told us that the pupils cross at about 7:30.  They’re never allowed to remain on the school buses.  Even though they don’t have ID cards they must get off, go through the metal detector and walk a considerable distance (exposed to the winds at the Tayasir checkpoint) to the bus which is already waiting on the other side.

We told the humanitarian office about the long lines as well as about the two detainees who hadn’t been released.

The soldiers here also didn’t object to our standing near the checkpoint itself all the time we were there.  They didn’t have a clear answer to the question of why everything is so terribly slow.  The checkpoint commander didn’t either.  At about 6:45 we saw three men wearing coveralls, not Palestinians, going through the checkpoint in the opposite direction.  Who they were, what they were doing, did they have any connection to the fact that crossing was slow this morning – we can only guess.

A military vehicle was positioned in the area where cars waited.  Its soldiers detained two youths for a short time; they apparently hadn’t crossed through the checkpoint itself.  Two of the soldiers, faces almost completely hidden, weapons drawn, continued to stand next to the vehicle even after the youths had been sent back.

It was very cold the whole time.

The Ma’aleh Efraim checkpoint was empty when we crossed on our way back.

Translator:  Charles K.

11:30  We went through the Bezeq checkpoint

The rains have rinsed off the Jordan Valley; a few puddles along the roadside, water in the wadi east of the Tevetz junction.

Alon road – an army jeep parked by the roadside near the Gochia gate.  A soldier sits on its hood.  A new earthen berm has risen parallel to the Alon road.  It begins 3 kilometers north of the Hamra junction and is 1.5 kilometers long.  The barriers west of the road have also been made higher for two kilometers before reaching the checkpoint.

12:55  Hamra checkpoint
Minibuses and vans transporting laborers.  No delays crossing westward.  Almost no cars or people going east.  Signs of the rains that fell are visible around the checkpoint, as are the efforts to clean and rake the area (by a tractor).  Four concrete blocks have been placed next to the (stinking!!!) garbage containers.  A pile of junk and garbage next to them (fence parts, plastic barriers, etc.).  An army backhoe parked at the checkpoint goes to work.  A Central Command engineering officer guides the backhoe operator.  We saw two new water lines that had been laid across a route parallel to the road.  We don’t yet know the significance of the work being done here.  The Central Command engineering officer didn’t answer our question.

13:55  We left.

Soldiers on maneuvers are scattered alongside the road up to Tayasir.  And also – an almond tree with splendid white blossoms.

14:30  Tayasir checkpoint
Very light traffic. 
The sign at the entrance to the base announces the presence of Battalion 97's "Mahatz [The ”Smiters”] Company" (from the March, 2011, wave of draftees), and cites the text on which the unit's name is based: "I have smitten them through, so that they are not able to rise." 
A smiling captain comes over to ask what we’re doing in the area under his command.  He proudly told us that he was the one who named his company “Mahatz.”  We didn’t ask what the sign meant.  [The text is from Psalms 18:39; the previous verse provides the full context:  "I have pursued mine enemies, and overtaken them; neither did I turn back till they were consumed."]    Unlike his predecessor, he confirmed what everyone knows, that it’s not a military area and that we’re permitted to be here.  Just not interfere..

A., a taxi driver, says that the soldiers delay traffic in the morning.  As a result, people are late, especially the teachers.  One of the people crossing mentioned insulting inspections of women.  He asks whether we can do anything about them.

14:50  We left

15:15  We crossed through the Bezeq checkpoint.

Translator Dvora K.

M.Z., a shepherd who lives close to the settlement of Maskiyot, has been arrested at the Tyasir CP two days ago at 21:00, by the person responsible for security in the settlement and a group of soldiers who backed him up. M.Z. was held without their calling the police, that is to say, without any legal reason for his arrest, and released at midnight. The excuse was that his herd was too close to the settlement. This is a repeated phenomenon. We saw the same thing in the neighborhood of the B'kaot settlement. Those in charge of security use the authority that they actually do not have and make their own laws in order to keep shepherds away from the settlement fence. The same person in charge of security notified the shepherds that they are not allowed to come closer than four kilometers from the fence. From an officer at the Zaharan DCO we learned that by decision of the local command, the actual distance is only 300 meters. And still, the person in charge of security gets backing from the local army officers to carry out an illegal arrest as punishment. We gave this shepherd and others the telephone number of Zaharan.

On the other hand, we must mention that the Guchiya CP has begun to open exactly on time, since the change of the army unit at Tyasir. This is happening after several months during which it wasn't. One of the commanders, Lieutenant H., whom we met earlier at the CP, promised that from now on the CP will be opened on time.

Za'atara CP (Tapuach Junction) 11.25

There are no inspections. One soldier is in the watchtower at the junction.

Maaleh Efraim CP 11.35:

There are inspections at the entrance to the valley. A taxi is being inspected. The passengers remain seated in the taxi. When we came back at 15:45 there were no soldiers at the CP

Hamra CP. 12.00

Passage is quick. There are no queues. This is a quiet time of the day. In the CP courtyard there is a bachoe and piles of fence parts. Apparently they are going to build a new fence, even though the CP has a good fence on all sides. We have already become used to the fact that the army does not make efforts to save money.

In the encampment opposite the Settlement of Maskiyot, M.Z. tells us that the night before last R., who is in charge of security in the settlement, came there accompanied by a group of soldiers, and they arrested him and brought him to the Tyasir CP, where they kept him for three hours. Details at the beginning of the report.

In this family, the little children study in a school that was opened in Badri's encampment beneath Maskiyot. The older ones study in Tyasir or in Beida. There's busing, and they pay three shekels a day for each child. The school belongs to the Palestinian Authority and is free until the age of 18.

Tyasir CP- 13/15

When we arrived at the CP there were no cars. Lieutenant H. came up to us and we learned from him that the unit of Military Engineers that manned the CP during the last several months has been replaced. And now the place is manned by soldiers from the Kfir Brigade. He promised that he will take care of opening the Guchiya CP according to plan, and that there would be no unnecessary delays.

In the Encampment of K. beneath Maskiyot–

There too, they told us that R., who is in charge of security in the settlement makes trouble for the shepherds and instructs them to stay 4-5 kilometers away from the fence. It is important to note that recently a new fence has been installed in Maskiyot and this fence extends to at least twice the area it enclosed before.

The children here all study in Tyasir. The daughter (16) is studying in a seminar for physical education teachers. The older son studies at the Open University in Tubas, because the University in Nablus is very expensive. They pay NIS4000 per semester. All of them are waiting for rain. That is the 'drug' of life. When will it rain????

GuchiyaCP –

At 15.00 exactly a jeep arrived. Lieutenant H. came in it to make sure that everything is alright. No one come to the gate, because they know that there is no chance that it will open. That has been the situation for the last three months at least. I called Abu Sacher to tell him that we were given a promise that from now on the gate would open as it should, and we asked him to notify people.

Translation: Bracha B.A.

09:30 – The Shomron (Samaria) Gate

The checkpoint is empty.

09:45 – Salafit

There were two soldiers at the checkpoint, which was also empty.

10:00 – Tapuach Junction

There was a jeep at the junction but no police or soldiers present.

10:15 – Maaleh Efraim

There were three soldiers at the checkpoint, which was unusual.

10:50 – Hamra Checkpoint

There were four soldiers present.  We met a man who told us that Danny Ashkenazi, the person responsible for security, is constantly harassing Palestinians.  Passage is going smoothly.

11:20 – Tayasir Checkpoint

Four cars are waiting for passengers who are being checked.  One of the drivers told us that they have been waiting for more than a half hour, and it was unusual for so many cars to be waiting there on Saturday.  We met a lot of people who were waiting and we asked if people were ever allowed to show their documents and pass through without getting out of their cars.  They explained that everything depended upon the soldier and whether he was pleasant or not.  Some soldiers let people through quickly and other "bad" ones deliberately make people wait for an hour and a half.  This is particularly true of people going from Tubas to the Jordan Valley.

By 11:40 all the cars that had been waiting and their passengers had crossed through.

12:30 – Hamra Checkpoint

There is a long line of cars waiting and there are  six soldiers, a bulldozer, and a command car at the checkpoint.

13:00 – Maaleh Efraim Checkpoint

The soldiers who were there this morning are now gone and the checkpoint is empty.  There is at least one soldier in the watchtower.

13:10 – Tapuach Junction

There are no soldiers present.

13:45 – Hawara Checkpoint

There are no soldiers present.

13:55 – There is a temporary road block at the entrance to Tzaara.   At 14:05 a jeep arrived and evidently gave an order to leave, and the roadblock is taken away.  People can pass through freely again.

14:20 -  – Eliyahu Gate

There is a long line of cars waiting to cross into Israel.

Translator:  Charles K.

09:30  Shomron crossing – The checkpoint is empty.

09:45  Salfit – Two soldiers at the checkpoint, which is empty.

10:00  Za’tara/Tapuach junction – A jeep in the parking lot but no police officers or soldiers at the checkpoint.

10:15  Ma’aleh Efrayim – Three soldiers at the checkpoint, which is unusual.

10:50  Hamra – Four soldiers at the checkpoint.  Inspection is quick.  A man told us that the head of security for Beqa’ot, Danny Ashkenazi, constantly harasses them (the Palestinians) at work.

11:20  Tayasir – Six cars waiting for their passengers.  The drivers say they’ve been waiting more than half an hour.  It’s unusual, so many cars waiting here on a Saturday.

We met many people waiting and asked them whether the checkpoint ever allows people to remain in their cars and simply show their documents to go through rather than having to get out and be inspected individually.

Again they say that it all depends on the soldiers– some treat them well and let them through quickly, others are “bad,” purposely taking their time.

Sometimes people are held up for an hour and a half, particularly those coming from Tubas to the Jordan Valley.

11:40 – All the cars that were waiting have driven off with their passengers.

12:30 – Hamra – A long line of cars coming from Tubas.  A command-car and six soldiers at the checkpoint.

13:00  Ma’aleh Efrayim – The soldiers who were here this morning have disappeared; the checkpoint is empty.  There’s at least one soldier in the tower.

13:10  Za’tara/Tapuach junction – No soldiers at the checkpoint.

13:45  Huwwara – No soldiers at the checkpoint.

13:55  Flying checkpoint at the entrance to Sara, with soldiers.  Six cars wait to enter Sara.

14:05  A jeep arrives, apparently orders them to pack up.  They packed up and left.  Crossing is unimpeded.

14:20  Eliyahu crossing – A long line of cars in every entry lane to Israel.

Translation: Bracha B.

We passed through Bezek Checkpoint. 

Alon Road

They are no longer working on the piles of earth.  Evidently they are already high and broad enough to please those responsible for security.   On the other hand soldiers from the Kfir Brigade are training intensely and the entire area is filled with clusters of tents and vehicles.

12:05 – Hamra Checkpoint

It is quiet and there is very little traffic.  Pedestrians pass through the checkpoint, holding their belts, and a few greet us.  The soldiers ignore us completely.  We left at 12:45.

12:55 – Tabatz Junction (Ascent to Tayasir)

Students are getting out of their transport vehicle.

13:05 – Tayasir Checkpoint

Here, too, there is a lot of noise and shooting from military exercises.  There is very little traffic.

We began to approach the position and were immediately shouted at to "get back, this is a military area".  Looking at the flag at the entrance we noticed that the soldiers had changed, and there is now a white flag with an emblem of a lion and a word.  A soldier comes out of the camp with a heavy jerrycan and asks us if we have permission to be there.  The road is empty and there is no traffic.  We presume someone has told the soldier about us. 

13:35. We left and saw no cars on our way back either.  We drove through Bezek Checkpoint at 14:00.

Translator:  Charles K.

About two weeks ago a deep ditch was dug from the Hamra checkpoint to the Gochia checkpoint, a distance of a few dozen meters, west of the Alon Road, along the route that was flatter before the ditch was dug.  The ditch is more than 4 meters deep, too narrow for a vehicle to pass.  They placed boulders where they were unable to dig.  It’s impossible to cross north of the checkpoint because of the topography (cf. photo in the report).  The result of these obstacles is that the Gochia checkpoint, which is open only three times a week for half an hour in the morning and in the afternoon is the only way for anyone living east of the road to access the area to its west.  In recent months, the Gochia checkpoint has almost never been open.  Up to now it has been barely possible to get around the ditch, and you risked punishment.  Now that’s no longer possible at all.

Despite the new, deep ditch, the Gochia checkpoint remains closed all the time.  At the hour it was scheduled to open a tractor pulling a wagon full of hay was waiting, and only after an hour and a half, during which we telephoned the DCO every ten minutes, did it open.  The driver and five small children waited two hours waited for the checkpoint to open, until 5 PM, and the checkpoint remained closed.  It’s unclear why the army invested so much effort and money to dig the ditch just to prevent a handful of Bedouin from reaching their encampments in the area or the town of Tamun west of the road, and doesn’t even bother to open the checkpoint even for the limited amount of time that was promised.  Malice?  Or obtuseness?  Aren’t people involved here?

Za’tara checkpoint (Tapuach junction) – 11:40
Vehicles coming from the direction of Huwwara are being inspected.  Five cars on line.  Two military jeeps at the checkpoint, but no Palestinian cars have been detained.  There’s a soldier in the observation tower at the junction.

Ma’aleh Efrayim checkpoint – 11:55 – Soldiers are present.  No cars.  As usual, young settlers wait for rides in the soldiers’ booth.

Gitit settlement – We can see that the agricultural area has been expanded.  New sown fields south of the built-up area.  New poultry houses have been built recently.

Hamra checkpoint – 12:15
Three cars wait for people coming through the checkpoint on foot.  They arrive pretty quickly, holding their belts in their hands.  A contractor who goes through every day says that it hasn’t been bad recently.

Vehicles travelling west, to Area A, aren’t inspected, but stop and wait to be waved through.  A new yellow sign was recently erected in front of the checkpoint, announcing that ambulances don’t have to wait on line.

Maskiyot settlement – A new fence has been erected around the settlement, and they took advantage of the opportunity to double its area northward.  Until a year or two ago, there was a pre-military program for religious youth here, with a few buildings to house students, staff and their families.  After the withdrawal from Gush Katif, a number of families arrived who’d been evacuated from one of the localities there.  They built them the villas on the ridge.  The new fence may signify an intention to expand the settlement.

When we visited the Bedouin tents on the other side of the road (where the blue tent belonging to young people from Maskiyot once stood), we were told that three days ago settlers from Maskiyot, along with the head of the settlement’s security who is notorious among the Bedouin, fell upon the women.  They chased away their flock, searched the tents (looking for what?) and then left.  The residents of Maskiyot frequently abuse the neighboring Bedouin, and no one stops them.

We met a mobile clinic on the road to the Tayasir checkpoint – an ambulance with a physician and nurses.  They come from Tubas, where there’s a medical center, and visit the Bedouin encampments twice a week.  Later we saw them at one of the encampments, the ambulance parked on the road, a number of woman and children waiting to be treated.

The ambulance driver complained that they’re delayed an hour or more at the Tayasir checkpoint while the medical staff and ambulance undergo a lengthy inspection.  When we were at the checkpoint we saw them going through quickly toward Tubas.  Was it because we were there?  Or because they were headed to Area A?  Inspections of people going in that direction are faster anyway.

Tayasir checkpoint – 13:20 – 14:30
The checkpoint was empty during most of the first half hour.
We remained in the car to eat lunch.  The commander and another soldier approached us (curiosity), asking whether we need help.  Then the shift changed and when we later went over to the pedestrian checkpoint the new commander (who seemed also to be new to the area) approached, announcing that it’s a closed military area, etc., etc.  Finally we compromised, and remained halfway up the hill. 

As usual at the checkpoint, vehicles are inspected only from one direction at a time, so lines form from the other direction.

14:15 – Fifteen minutes passed before any vehicle on line from the east was called up, and then they started going through quickly.  The taxi drivers collect the ID cards ahead of time, which makes the inspection go faster.  The line of five cars was gone in five minutes.

A closed truck, also on its way to Area A (under Palestinian control), is carefully inspected.  They remove the canvas cover, a soldier climbs up to inspect.  It was carrying empty plastic containers for agricultural produce.

14:25 – A car coming from the west is detained.  The driver argues.  It turns out that he moved forward for inspection without having been signaled to do so.  Then his vehicle is carefully inspected.  He didn’t receive any additional punishment, perhaps because we were watching?

15:05  Gochia checkpoint
Cf. the main points, above.  We telephoned Zaharan, the DCO crossings officer, every ten minutes.  He contacted his representative at brigade headquarters; they tried to find out what was happening, made repeated requests, and each time were promised that someone was on the way to open the gate, but no one came.  We kept nagging.  We had to leave at 16:15 because of commitments.  We gave the tractor driver Zaharan’s phone numbers, and ours, and took his.  That’s how we found out that the gate finally opened at 16:30. 

Ma’aleh Efrayim checkpoint – 16:35
Soldiers are present.  The checkpoint is empty.

Translator:  Charles K.

11:30  Tapuach-Za’tara checkpoint

Heavy traffic from the south (Ramallah) and from the north (Nablus) – No car arrived at the checkpoint during the seven minutes we watched.  There must be a checkpoint or roadblock somewhere farther along the road on the way to Huwwara.

11:50  Ma’ale Efrayim checkpoint -  The checkpoint isn’t manned

We drove to El Auja to see the spring which until ten years ago flowed abundantly and provided water via channels to the town of Auja, the surrounding localities and the Dead Sea (so it won’t dry up, God forbid), 1/3 to each destination.  Rusted dams, blocked channels, and the famous water slide are all ruined, because Israel erected three giant pumping stations nearby and another one higher up the hill, and diverted all the water to the settlements.  And they even had the nerve to ask us to vote for that miserable, neglected site (the Dead Sea) that’s drying up because of Israel’s failures, so that it will be honored by UNESCO…

This is how the El Auja spring looked in 1998.

Now it’s winter, no heavy rains yet, but even though some rain has already fallen the location is as dry as the sole of the occupier’s shoe.  Compare the attached photos.  Note:  the photo of the dams shows the white pumping station “peeking” above the dam.

13:30  Hamra – No cars.  We drove on.

14:00 – Tayasir checkpoint

We’re halfway up the hill to the checkpoint and three soldiers come toward us to chase us away.  One of them says he’s the checkpoint commander, flounces toward me puffing out his chest, announcing “Me – I’m the man!!! Remember me?” (cf. the Jordan Valley report, Hamra, a month ago).  His arrogance and pride, reminding me of the violent incident he oversaw, indicate that the police did nothing about it. 

He yelled at his soldiers to close the checkpoint.  Five minutes later a line of seven cars had formed from the east and six from the west.  We were forced to withdraw in order not to harm the Palestinians.  The journalist tried to explain to the soldiers that harming the Palestinians in order to get rid of us is both illegal and immoral, but his words fell on deaf ears.  I called Zaharan, the DCO officer.  He didn’t answer.

Palestinians we spoke to said that there have been many delays recently at this checkpoint.

(15.12.11 – Two days after this shift, starting at 14:00 in the afternoon, I received four telephone calls from Palestinians reporting that the soldiers at the Tayasir checkpoint are lounging in the shed, not inspecting, not letting anyone cross, and long lines of cars are waiting.  At 16:00, after calls to the DCO and to Zaharan, they began letting people through).

Gochia checkpoint (13:40 and 15:00)

The gate is open; we went in toward Tamun.  Some 300 meters east of the gate are rows and rows of tents and soldiers aiming at targets shaped like people, set up between them and a path on which Palestinians travel.  We were afraid of being hit by a stray bullet.  Isn’t the safety of Palestinians important enough for them to shoot in a different direction?  Cars parked next to the tents, the soldiers’ families visiting their children.  Is that why the gate is open?

(15.12.11 – Two days after this shift there was a call that the gate hadn’t opened at 15:00 as it was supposed to; Palestinians with wives and children were waiting.  The gate opened at 16:10, after calls to the DCO).

16:00 – Ma’ale Efrayim – Manned by three soldiers; three cars waiting to cross slowly from the West Bank to the Jordan Valley.

Translator:  Charles K.

11:45  Bezeq checkpoint – We crossed.

Clear skies, the hillsides becoming green, the occupation is at full tilt…

Alon Road

The fence of Maskiyot settlement, with its light poles, is now below a huge sign reading  “Maskiyot.”  The suspicion that they’re preparing for a new stage of construction seems to be coming true.

Gochia checkpoint

Soldiers, two military ATVs, and a white military Transit standing near the gate.  The area looks as if a geological trauma had occurred.  Rocks, piles of earth, a broad, deep trench west of the berm. 

The earth mound

Three teams working to raise it higher and dig the trench behind it (Maginot Line?).  The southernmost team nears the Hamra checkpoint, where there was a huge yellow bulldozer.  Each of the two teams working west of the section of the road between the settlements of Ro’i and Beqa’ot has two D9 bulldozers and soldiers protecting them.  The process:  a bulldozer digs and deepens the trench west of the earth mound, a second bulldozer puts the excavated earth on the earth mound, to make it higher.

12:35  Hamra checkpoint

A staff sergeant approaches us to put us in our place. He’s pleased to discover he knows us.
Many (more than 15) soldiers on site.  Various vehicles, include a huge prison vehicle.  The soldiers are geared up from head to toe, including knives strapped to their legs, as if on their way to some operation.  A line of six cars forms.  One soldier notices and waves them through.  The staff sergeant gathers the fighters and orders them to clean the checkpoint area.

13:15  We left.

13:30  Tayasir checkpoint

A Transit (ID number in red) belonging to the Palestinian Authority Ministry of Health waits to cross eastward.  The driver says they arrived at the checkpoint at about 1 PM.  A small truck stands at the position on the road, 4 or 5 people sitting on the curb.  Soldiers gathered around them.  After about 15 minutes a line of taxis and other cars has formed.  One of the drivers shows us photographs of long lines that he takes every day, at different times.  He says that drivers and passengers wait and wait, and the soldiers don’t let them through. 

When we began moving toward the checkpoint (13:45) a soldier came over.

“You’re not allowed to be here,” “Closed military area,” he said he’d been sent to move us away.  We asked who’s being detained.  The answer:  “Someone who had been imprisoned.  We’re waiting for them to contact us over the radio, and then we’ll transfer him.”  We hadn’t managed to find out how he know the person had been imprisoned, and if he had, why detain him now, when two officers emerged from the army base.  We asked why three soldiers are leaning over one of the detainees, and what are they’re doing to him.  The officer said he’s going to see what’s happening.  So do we. 

14:00  We telephone Chana B.  The answer wasn’t long in coming.  We were asked to wait half an hour to see whether they’ll be released.

We hear the soldiers who are near the detainees:  “I’m not talking to you!!!”  “He’s been in the Islamic Movement for three years, and that one has been a member for five years…”  Meanwhile you can see the long line that formed to the east.  A military jeep comes out of the base.  One of the drivers calls to a soldier and offers to move aside the truck blocking the crossing to allow the cars to go through.  And at 14:05 his offer is implemented.  The detainees are sent to sit near the wall of the observation tower, the truck is parked in the adjacent parking bay.  The caravan begins to cross. 

14:15  The cars from the west begin crossing. 

14:30  The pupils arrive.  They ask for food, for money, and run to their minibus.  There was no one to ask how long they’d waited to cross.

Sounds of gunfire from the firing ranges.  More and more shots.

14:40  We begin to leave.  The detainees are still seated at the foot of the wall.  Seven soldiers come out of the base in a line, one designated to bring up the rear.  They’re loaded down.  One complains: “Why did you drop this target practice on me?”

14:45  We left.

15:05  Bezeq checkpoint – we went through.

Phone call from Chana:  The detainees were released at about 16:30.