Beit Iba, Sunday, 13.05.07 pm Observers: Aliya S., Susan L. (reporting)SummaryA vicious circle is defined as one thing/trouble leading to another that then aggravates the first. It’s a simple way to look at what goes on in the Occupied Palestinian Territories, from the macro – as violence has subsided, the number of roadblocks has increased — 44% more in 2006 than in 2005; or, from the micro – a Palestinian woman at a checkpoint, standing tall and proud, having her bags thoroughly checked by a soldier trying to humiliate her dignity and, failing, taking out his/her own frustration on the next Palestinian, reinforcing the hardships he/she already has to endure.On the way to the OPT: 13:10 — a Palestinian woman waits for a lift, inside the Green Line, not far from the bridge over Route 6. She, with her packages, get into the car, and a short while later, she calls out to her son and his friend, already walking towards the Territories. They, too, get in the car, and on the way to the signpost, for the marked settlement of Zufim, which is the approach to unmarked Qalqiliya, where they live, we hear of the illnesses of children and of needed treatment, PHR (Physicians for Human Rights) numbers are handed out and the usual coffee invitation extended.13:35 Jit JunctionUnmanned checkpoint at the ready.13:35 Junction of Routes 60 and 57??Not far from the settlement of Shavei Shomron, an opening now on to the roadway leading to Anabta or Beit Iba. Vehicles seen forging ahead, up the steep hill, on the only way open to Jenin ((see Anabta report for more details).13:40 Deir SharafFrom time to time, we visit this once-upon-a-time checkpoint, situated at the back entrance to the settlement of Shavei Shomron, and are told by a soldier that “this is not a checkpoint, it’s a gate.” Needless to add, the gate is permanently closed – to all but the occupying power. At the minimarket, we hear again, at first hand, of the owner’s dire economic circumstances, confirmed, at the macro level, in the recently released report of the World Bank: the Palestinian economy is in crisis, cannot emerge from it, and that the normal conduct of business exceedingly difficult. The practical effect of this shattered economic space means an individual, like Jamal, cannot pay his suppliers what he owes from the time, a couple of years back, when a military checkpoint prevented access to his warehouse supplies which were, consequently, ruined. More grim stories, further down the road, from the Huwwash Brothers’ carpentry workshop where thieves have stolen thousands of shekels’ worth of tools…. Beit Iba14:30 — “When,” calls out one of the usual porters,” is this checkpoint going to close?” But it’s more a rhetorical statement, posed with irony, than a question. The filth on the ground seems to be ever more ingrained, and there seem to be a lot of soldiers at the checkpoint. Few vehicles from the Deir Sharaf direction, six to eight from Nablus, and this ratio holds all the time that we’re here. Six at the main checking post, plus four at the vehicle checking area, with S., the sergeant in command, concerned but ineffective in dealing with joking-around soldiers who behave like children. A military policewoman seems to goad him and others on, and it is also she, plus another soldier who harass the Palestinians, non stop.S. first “directs” the pedestrians at the turnstiles, not really necessary, as there aren’t that many. No humanitarian line open, but people try to use it nevertheless and are sent back to the “checkpoint.” 14:45 — the bag checking is today ever more invasive. One soldier, plus pointed gun, and the military policewoman, who also carries the GSS list in her hands, insist that bags not only be poked but that they be entirely turned inside out, even when empty! The whole system is inefficient as well as humiliating, since often people’s IDs are checked twice, or they are called back, with shouts, when one of these two thinks that they’ve not been checked. The military policewoman, conscious of our presence, prods the commander on, complaining about the MachsomWatch women, so he, in turn, hears about our right to take photos, of the checkpoint in general, rather than individual soldiers. She gives her commander, too, a piece of her mind about a fellow military policeman.15:00 — there’s a detainee already in the detention compound when we arrive, and since nothing seems to be happening, even after S. talks to him, we ask what is going on: as he tried to get around the checkpoint, he’s being held “for the time being.” S. won’t concede that the Palestinian is being punished, nor does he know what to do. “Maybe call the police.” “Have the police been called?” we ask, to which we receive this response: “No, I’m the policeman of the checkpoint.” Vicious circles or cycles, whatever…..15:10 — a young man is taken to the lock up, and we go over to see why. The soldier checking at the table calls out to us, gratuitously, “So you want to peek?” And when the woman military policewoman returns to the checking booth, she also, likewise, needlessly, tells us that our “ears need cleaning”: children of the occupying power.