Bethlehem 13/4/04 Watchers: Tali S., Ora S., Yael S. (reporting) a guest How long will this closure last??? DCO Ezion, 16:15. 6 men are waiting; they look desperate. Requests for passage permits:One vehicle for Route 60; one medical case; one for Har-Homa resident who needs to renew permits he and his family had; a resident of Bethlehem refugee camp needs permit to visit relatives in Jerusalem. No requests for work permits because none are given. The medical case is granted permit for one week (Dalia Bassa will check his papers tomorrow and if needed, will extend it to a month).The Har-Homa resident, who has been waiting since 9 AM, is promised a month’s permit for those having a magnetic card. This was accomplished only after Ora had spoken with Motti, and Azhar promised to take care of it. We were unable to help the other cases. The Palestinians complain that this closure has gone way too far: “Your holiday is over.” El Khader. We spoke to the owner of a falafel store. He reported that beating continues at Wadi-Nar. Yoram Binur will report on this on Channel 2 tonight. Cab drivers complain that they are stopped at Ezion CP and not allowed to go to Halhul and Hebron. Again, the Palestinians change cabs. The Humanitarian Center of the Civil Administration did not respond to our inquiries. One of the drivers brought a serious allegation: An IDF jeep arrives at 7:00 AM and the soldiers spray tear gas causing injuries to the drivers. I reported this to Arbel. We stand away from the CP and talk with the few people who go through. No report of detainees at this hour (18:00), only complaints that the wait is long. We could not make contact with the BP so we drove away.