Beit Furiq Checkpoint, Sunday 15.4.07 PMObservers: Noa P., Tal H., Naomi L (reporting)Guests: David and Keren. Translation: Tal H.On the Eve of Israel’s Official Holocaust Memorial Day15:30 – upon our arrival at the checkpoint we saw a soldier ordering the drivers of five trucks and an ambulance to park in a line at the side of the ‘forbidden’ road just before the checkpoint, get out of their vehicles and hand him their IDs – eight in all. “They”, said the cp commander, “were driving on a Jews-only road.” Coming out of Awarta, they had turned right towards the Huwwara CP turnabout instead of proceeding straight ahead on the longer, pot-holed road assigned them. Caught after about a minute and a half of travel on the ‘forbidden’ road (“Don’t say apartheid!” Brigade deputy commander Yaron said on the phone, ‘We speak a Jewish language”), they will be detained for six hours – battalion commander’s orders. “I take orders only from my commander”, the CP commander announced. The drivers were on their way home after a day’s work, some of them from Awarta and Beita, others from Aqraba and Hebron. “Why don’t they put up a sign forbidding us to use this road?” they asked, and so did we. We explained to sealed military ears present that no matter how long they will be detained, other checkpoints and barriers on their way will be closed and some of them will not make it home by morning. The ambulance was released immediately, when the soldiers realized that ambulances are permitted to travel “Madison road”, as it is called in the Jewish (army) language.Brigade commander Amir B. threw the responsibility over to his deputy Yaron F., who in turn passed it on to the battalion commander who – obviously – is the local legislator, judge and executor. He ruled six hours, then relaxed that into four hours and his superiors will certainly not bend his decision. He is the one to decide. We spoke with the head of the DCO who promised to look into the matter but only later, after he attends the Holocaust commemoration event that is about to start. We also turned to Meretz party’s people in the Knesset, who joined our phoning efforts.In the meantime we listened to Mohhammad who told us about his 8 children at home, and the truck in which he was carrying feed for the sheep that are waiting for it at home since morning, and what will happen now if he is denied his entry permit to Nablus, how is he going to feed his own children? And the driver from Hebron listed all the checkpoints (some closed) still waiting to be crossed on his long way home.All the while, residents of the villages Beit Furiq and Beit Dajan came crossing the pedestrian CP, a loudly creaking turnstile operated by the soldiers pressing a button, people getting stuck inside, sometimes a mother, at others her children; all personal effects undergo thorough inspection (rummaging), men are ordered to lift up their shirts and push down their pants a bit, in full public view. The occupied know what is expected of them, the occupiers know their job, whoever is not permitted to cross the checkpoint (the rest of the entire Palestinian people, anyone not registered as residing in the two villages mentioned above) has not been coming here for a long time, and everything done in quiet, polite submission. Some smile, others fume. “This is the worst checkpoint” says one.Nor are the residents of Jiftliq (in the Jordan Valley) allowed here any longer. Lately we have been asked to help people living in Beit Furiq who own land in the Jiftliq and are therefore registered as Jordan Valley residents. “Change your address on your ID” say the soldiers. And that is precisely the point: as soon as they do, they will no longer be allowed access to their land which they have been cultivating for generations, and which is their livelihood. Make up your mind, the State of Israel tells them: give up either your residence and family, or your land and livelihood.20:15 – no progress on the release of the hostages. The authorities are all off to the commemoration ceremonies and there is no one to talk to. The brigade commander had promised that the battalion commander would assure their passage at Huwara CP as well, once they are released. Of the rest of the checkpoints on the way to Hebron, he made no mention. We exchanged phone numbers with the held-up drivers and left.At 21:30 -they informed us they were being released and crossing Huwara as promised. We have no idea when they got to Hebron, but our experience tells us they had no chance of getting there before morning.Thus the residents of Beit Furiq ghetto went home, as they do every evening, and we, and our young guests on their first visit to an Israeli checkpoint deep in the heart of the West Bank – felt the chill of these circumstances in time and place, a chill that does not go away when we get out of the cold wind outside and into our warm van taking us home.