Hawwara, Beit-Furik, Za’atara Junc. – Monday 17.10.05 PM Observed by: Merav A., Hadas Sh. (visitor), Hagar L. (reporting)Occupation routine a day after the shooting assaults in Eztion in Eli Junctions. No passage southward for residents of all towns and villages north to Za’atara junction (i.e., Nablus, Tul-Carem, Kalkilia, Jenin, Selfitt). Only passengers from Ramallah and vicinity can cross southward. Military Hummers vehicles stand along both road 5 and road 60 (from Za’atra junction to Huwwara) every few Km., but there are no roadblocks.In spite of the harsh restrictions on movements, passengers who must get from Ramallah to Nablus and vice versa, go through side-roads that take two hours. It emphasizes the collective punishment nature of the restrictions following the shooting assaults. Huwwara CP is being managed efficiently and with full control of its commander, but that does not take away feelings of humiliation of those who pass there.13:40 Za’atra Junc. – Almost empty from all directions. From North there are only 3 cars. We don’t stop there.13:50 – No Roadblock at Huwwara-Izt’Har junction.13:55 Huwwara CP -is packed with pedestrians. Many taxis are waiting in the southern parking lot. We decide to go first to Beit-Furik.14:00 Beit-Furik CP. – Relatively heavy traffic of pedestrians. About 50 pedestrians waiting to cross from Nablus. Boarder Police soldiers runs the CP. Few detainees that their IDs appeared in the short list are released just before our arrival. Very few vehicles are crossing from both directions.We talk with Taxi drivers at the parking area and learn about a severe event that took place in the morning (they said that they didn’t see MW women there in the morning – Has there been?). Here is what they told us: “At 6:30 am a large group of settlers arrived at the parking area, blocked the road and prayed. BP soldiers that manned the CP secured them in a circle and closed passage through the CP for both directions. While praying, the settlers had the time also to puncture tires of several cars. BP soldiers were present at the place and did nothing to stop the incident. Civilian police was not summoned to clear the road and open it for traffic for the Palestinians. This awful event continued for three hours up to 9:30 am. Teachers, laborers and business people could not pass and missed a full day of work.” Due to the Ramadan fast, the workday starts now very early, around six o’clock am and ends at noon time. The blockage actually caused people a loss of a whole workday. All that was done under protection of the Boarder Police!Can anyone confirm these facts? A complain should be submitted against the BP soldiers if these are the facts. Several Taxi drivers asked our mobile numbers in order to inform us whenever such events happen again. Palestinians also complained that the CP is not being opened on-time, 5:30 am as they say, right after the end of morning pray, in order to let people start their work day early.The CP commander is our ‘acquaintance’ from Huwwara from last week, who “fished” pedestrians randomly at the northern parking area and detained them for an hour, passed them an “educational course” for fifteen minutes before releasing them. Today he lectures Merav and Hadas about the necessity of the CPs and what he thinks about us (“…to really understand the situation you should be in the estimate of situations meetings and not in the CPs.”).14:25 Huwwara CP – More than 100 pedestrians in the CP. Women and older men are crossing through the humanitarian line. 2 metal-detecting posts and 2 ID checking posts working, and after a while the DCO rep. joins them and opens a third post. One of the MP soldiers who checks IDs, is very polite, smiles and exchange some words (in fluent Arabic or in Hebrew, depends whom he talks to) with those who come to his stand while checking their IDs, and people react accordingly. We notice that at all times his line is longer then the other two, even when the others call pedestrians to forward to theirs. Hope he will not burnt out too soon.One detainee who has already been in the closed shed is released before we have the time to ask bout him. Another young man is asked to enter the closed shed. He tells us that for the last two weeks he has been stopped every time he crossed the CP. We turn to the DCO officer in place and he promises to check why this young man is being detained. He is released few minutes later and we find out that we know his family, we brought things from Judah M. to their house just week ago and he has Hagar’s number on his mobile. We are glad to send regards to the family and tells the DCO rep. that we know the family. We ask B. to call us if he will be detained again.In the two Metal-detector posts, MP female-soldiers check bags and give orders: “take off belt, take-up shirt, empty pockets”. Instructions are given in a rude manner, including “straightening” the line. In each post the female-soldier is the one who checks the young male passengers and the male-soldier guards with a pointed weapon toward them.We ask captain E. the MP commander in place, to replace the female-soldiers with male-soldiers to lessen the humiliation. He maintains that this is impossible because: a) female-soldiers check better than male-soldiers, b) the humanitarian line should be attended by an officer, c) there are more MP female than male soldiers. We also turns to a DCO rep. with request to exercise more sensitivity toward young men who are checked.14:40 – Due to increasing crowding of pedestrians, the swinging-gates are disconnected and people move in big groups. In the line close to the road, three soldiers: one with manual metal-detector, one check bags and a female-soldier who “undress” passengers. There are now about 200 pedestrians in the CP. Women pass in the humanitarian line and hardly being checked.15:10 – Traffic lines in both direction are thin (5 cars on the line to exit Nablus), probably because of the extreme restriction on movement at Za’atra junction. At the X-Ray truck– a Surprise! Two wretched folding tables at the bag exit. It won’t prevent bags from falling to the ground because it takes longer for someone to get from one side of the car to the other than it takes for the bags to go through the X-ray. Thoughts Police checks newspaper of a car passenger.15:12 – A perfect ordered queue of about 100 pedestrian stands before the revolving gate. We measure time for the last person in the line. The CP commander join the Thoughts Police and invests about 10 minutes in checking, asking and calling to find out about a CD with songs that bears an artistic picture of arm holding a rifle. The nice MP soldier remarks half joking that soon they will be asked to check each passenger’s MP3. The CP commander gets the idea and returns the CD but stops the guy for ID check. He is released in two minutes.15:32 – There are now much fewer pedestrians. The young men that was last in the queue is exiting the CP (20 minutes).Hagar gives the CP commander copy of the army procedures regarding detaining people at the CP, and procedures regarding confiscation of IDs (material is given on request from A. a CP commander from last week. Y. the CP in place asks for another copy for himself and tells us that he will make sure that other CP commander will have it).15:40 – On the way to our car two men ask for our help. They live in A’swwiya but they were not allowed through in Za’atra junction. At that moment a white Jeep of the DCO passes by, we stop them and the deputy head of DCO-Nablus, B. explains to the men how they should go by car. We understand that taxis are allowed to go through Za’atra but not private cars. Of course the alternative way the two men should drive is much longer.We notice that a short segment of the uphill path to the new settlement was tarred (by the quarry). We may climb the path next time.15:50 – Little after Izt’har-Huwwara junc., at the edge of Huwwara, a Hammer vehicle stands and stops cars from time to time, but not every car. We wait to look for few minutes and drive off (a short shift because of Holiday eve).15:55 Za’atra junction – no cars from North (Nablus). From west two transit cabs. We ask the soldiers what are their orders: Palestinians who go to Selfitt can turn to the right, the same turn that leads to Tapu’ah but not southward to Ramallah. At the first cab there are employees who return home from industrial area of Barkan. IDs are returned and the cab goes home. We also drive home.