Arik Asherman – driving; David Shulman, Peg Olin, Rita Mendes-Flohr – reporting

As we arrive to the hill where the flocks of A and M are, three soldier are already at the top of the hill, telling us that this is a closed military area to the shepherds and to the activists and we must leave. They take our identity papers, and leave with them, in order to await today’s written order.

It is always the same area that is off grounds to the shepherds, but a new order has to be issued each day. A few months ago, there was an agreement with the army that the shepherds could graze there sheep there, but apparently the settler Omer, owner of an illegal farm on this land, has been able to pressure the authorities to issue this daily order, to keep the shepherds from coming anywhere near his farm. 

In the meantime, one of the shepherds had already started to move their flocks in the direction of home. They did not even take advantage of the time it took to get the actual order to let the sheep enjoy the grass in the presumably forbidden field.

When the order finally came, we received our identity papers back on the condition that we would leave the area on the map.  At least the soldiers, unlike many of their colleagues, were civil and polite.