Habla

"When the heart is black"

13:00-14:00: 

The Habla CP at the separation obstruction, separates the Palestinians from Qalqilya and Habla from their lands which are situated on both sides of road 55 and which have de facto been annexed to Israel. The lucky ones which have obtained permits to pass through the CP, are allowed to leave the West Bank and to enter it on only three fixed times during the day.

The noon hour during which the CP is activated is an hour during which there are few Palestinians passing (this may be coincidental). There are moments when there isn't even "a quintet" that passes from one side of the CP to the other. This is the time at which a Palestinian wearing a shining yellow vest sweeps the area around the computerized checking post. Apparently, what could happen?!  But the CP bears the life story of those who are forced to comply with its arbitrariness, a life in which the occupation invades their private corners and rules them. For example the life of two brothers. One is a grade 7 pupil and the other a grade 2 pupil. They live in Arb A Ramadin and return from school in Qalqilya, in their father's car. We were thus witness to scathing and hurtful words which a not so young man with a little boy sounded in the ears of the soldiers which were in the watch post adjacent to the pedestrians' gate. At first he asked to be allowed to transfer a washing machine (?) as his daughter was going to marry. The refusal with which he was met ("as these are the regulations") raised the issue of the treatment he was usually  subjected to at the CP. Two months before a girl soldier who was at the CP confiscated his pass permits for no  reason. In his ID card he had  a letter of recognition for his having served a teacher for 35 years, and she had some objection regarding this document. At this incident a junior soldier was present /cooperated with the maltreatment, and now interfered with the man's expressing his complaint. The man insisted on talking with the commander. The soldier asked "to open a new page" and the man answered "….but there will be no new page. Your heart is black, not white…" And the child witnessed the conversation.

Before we left a commercial vehicle of the "Zalman Barashi and Bros. company Ltd" drove on the road between the two obstacle fences and departed by way of the CP in the direction of road no. 55. The CP was closed.