HUWWARA, Tuesday 25 May 2004 AMObservers: Edna K., Miriam S., Nurit V., Etty P. (reporting) colour=red>07:55 – En route to Huwwara, we stopped at Shavei Shomron which was very busy, with many buses, taxis and people on both sides. There were even food stalls!08:20 — At Beit Iba, by contrast, the checkpoint was almost empty. Two newly-arrived detainees were awaiting the checking of their papers [against a central list compiled and maintained by the General Security Services, also known by the Hebrew acronym Shin Bet or Shabak; the check can take anywhere from 20 minutes to several hours]. Reservists in charge of the checkpoint were friendly and welcomed us.08:50 — At Huwwara South, there were 30 people in line, but no detainees. A boy with a referral for an X-ray was told by the soldiers that he could not enter Nablus. This turned out to be part of an overall policy of refusing requests for treatment in Nablus. At our insistence , the checkpoint commander, Sgt. M., agreed to let the child through. We called D.B., who coordinates medical services in the occupied territories, about a woman whom the soldiers were not permitting to return to the hospital where she had been treated: they directed her to Ramallah instead. D.B. promised assistance, but in the end the soldiers let the woman proceed after we had intervened on her behalf. Two workers with permanent permits to work in [the Jewish Israeli settlements of] Ariel and Barkan wanted to visit relatives in the Nablus hospital and complained that while they were allowed to enter Israeli settlements without a check , they were prevented from entering Nablus after having been checked. At Huwwara North there were nine detainees awaiting a check of their papers. The usually reasonable and courteous 2nd Lt. Y., refused passage through the checkpoint to the eye doctor’s mobile van. Apart from this, the traffic flowed well and checks were efficient. At 11:10, we experienced the somewhat hallucinatory appearance of two young British women, tourists who wanted to enter Nablus to visit a friend. They were surprised to find the checkpoint and to learn that they needed a special visa to enter the area. They called the District Coordinating Office (DCO), but got no answer [the DCO is the army section that deals with civilian matters; it usually has representatives at the checkpoints ostensibly to alleviate the lot of the Palestinians]. At 11:30, we talked to Y. from the DCO, about the detainees at Huwwara North. He promised to try and help and meanwhile we asked him to help the tourists. After talking to them, he arranged entry for them even though they did not have the special visa. 11:45 — All the detainees at Huwwara North were released although there were several new ones.In conclusion: this was a watch was without special incidents. The soldiers were efficient and there were no unnecessary delays apart from the usual bureaucratic foul-ups, which the presence of a DCO officer alleviated.