Abu-Dis, Zeitim CP, The Container Friday, 19.5.2006 AM-PM (08:50-13:15)Observers: Mikhal Z, Barbara S, Rita M. Threats to use tear gas, in two places, for no particular reason.Still teaching the lesson, so that the Palestinians will get used to not trying to pass at the Pishpash.Shouting, disrespectful monologue through the loudspeakers at the Zeitun checkpoint.The Pishpash – closed to all, including those with blue ID’s who are sent to Zeitim CP. One of the BP says that this morning he did a favor to some tourists, and let them through. The only ones allowed to pass are people “on the list” – those residents of Abu-Dis on the eastern side of the wall who have petitioned to the Supreme Court. There are several BP in the monastery grounds, preventing people from trying to pass. The wall around the very tall apartment house – and the house behind it, with about three or four stories. The gate to the yard of the tall apartment house is locked, we ask the guard to get us the key, and lo and behold, he opens the gate for us to see the wall in the process of construction. Here it is built on a concrete foundation, with columns that are about 8 meters tall – the height of the wall when it is finished. Between the columns, the wall is built out of light colored blocks – supposedly it is a “more pleasant sight” to have such blocks in front of the residents’ noses than a solid concrete wall???? But we doubt if the builders of the wall are so ‘considerate’ – most likely this method of construction is more convenient for a wall that runs in the backyards between people’s houses.We meet M. the owner of the three/four story house (he rents out apartments in it), whose yard has already been partially transformed into a road for the BP, which will run along the wall. The wall, which will be 8 meters high, follows two sides of his yard, and the house is enclosed on the third side, in the back, by a tall retaining wall. Soon the residents of this house will be facing those light colored blocks, rather than looking out at the view of trees, sky and the other houses around them. M. tells us they wanted to take another meter from his yard for the BP road, so that it would practically run under the large balconies that surround each floor, a meter and a half away from the walls of his house – but he seems to have reached an agreement that they won’t do so – at least, for the time being, you never know, they might change their minds, he adds. It puts him in a situation where he has to be grateful that they are only taking half his land!! The old-new gate (lower on the road) – Three very old men, one partially blind, are standing at the gate, and are not allowed to go to Jerusalem to pray. “ We have orders not to let anyone pass here. They must get used to it, that this is not a gate, they must go to the Zeitim CP” in the soldier’s words. We tell him that the elderly men already made the long way to get here, and that we know that despite the general orders, he is able to exercise his own judgment in each specific case. “You think those old men can’t get to the Zeitim CP? If they were able to jump over the wall to get here, they will certainly be able to get there!” “They must simply learn not to come here!”. We tried to call Eli Gabai, who is away on a workshop. Another BP guarding another entrance, seemed to get involved (turns out he was the commander of the checkpoint) and we walked away, to see what would happen, and eventually the men passed, one by one, at intervals. Zeitim CP – Practically deserted. A woman soldier/police yells at an old man through the speakers to use the other turnstile, but the man does not understand Hebrew, and she keeps yelling at him. Then she starts to yell through the loudspeaker at one of us in a very, very vulgar tone, that keeps getting worse and worse, as if she has nothing better to do than to have this long, monologue through the loudspeaker. “What are you doing here? You like to stand in the sun? You are disturbing me in my work! (what work? nobody seems to be passing here at all…) When we ask her through the intercom if there is a closure today she barks: “What do you care?”She refused to give us her name.The Container – About 30 cars on each side, waiting patiently. nobody is moving, nobody is checking.The soldiers all seem to be talking inside the booth. (We are told that the day before, when there was a warning of a terror attack in Jerusalem, the line of cars extended all the way down to the wadi).Suddenly a soldier comes out, and lets the cars going north pass one by one, without checking – but only one direction is open at the time – so all the cars going north must pass first, and then it is the turn of all of those going south. Don’t they have enough soldiers to staff the checkpoint in both directions? Later the checkpoint commander comes over to us, to explain why there was the big traffic jam – there was a suspicious man, with wires hanging from his shirt, and so they had to clear out the checkpoint, and nobody could go through. Once the man was checked, the traffic was allowed to flow again – of course, with occasional ID checks of young men in taxis, and of all private vehicles. The Pishpash – When we return, about 15-20 people are standing there, not allowed to go through. A jeep comes from the monastery grounds, with honking, and the BP yells through speaker “if you do not go back, I will through gas on you”. and later, when he comes out of the jeep, again threatens, “in another five minutes I will throw the gas”. Apparently he perceives the 15 people there as “crowding”, even though they are standing there quite calmly.The Old New gate – At this gate, another religious older man is arguing with the BP, he is becoming very upset that his right to pray is not honored, and turns to us too, in anger at the peace movement. The BP pushes him back, physically, which angers the old man even more. The BP officer, who is brand new to the area – with three V shaped stripes – J.G., threatens to use tear gas, actually asks another soldier to load the tear gas gun. We talk to him, and eventually he decides that the religious man is so insistent on his rights, that he is having his ID checked – “just to make sure he did not put up a performance, and is sincere”. His ID turns out to be OK, and eventually he is let through.