Huwwara and Tapuach Junction. 17 July 2005 Watchers: Yael B., and Ditza Y. (reporting)There is no way of crossing Tapuach Junction from North to South Shomron. A closure is on. Huwwara is quiet with nothing in particular happening.Tapuach Junction7:35 a.m.A queue of about twelve vehicles in the direction of Nablus. In the opposite direction there are two queues: one normal one where when the people drive up to the soldiers’ position, the drivers are checked but have to backtrack and the second which has a small number of vehicles, for those who have special circumstances (such as medical teams), who are permitted to go on their way.When asked, the soldiers report that there is a closure and Palestinians from Nablus and its surroundings are not allowed to go south. Later we find out that this closure is called a ‘separation’. The I.D.F. is very creative in inventing impressive names for restricting Palestinians.A man who is carrying a load of frozen juice on his lorry, which he is due to deliver to villages outside the area of Nablus, tells us that he came yesterday with his load and had to return. Today he is trying again, because you can never tell what is going to happen and he needs to support his family. He tells us that from his village – Beit Dagan in Shomron, he was allowed to cross at Awwarta and the roadblock at Beit Iba, without anyone informing him that he had no chance of crossing the roadblock at Tapuach. And like him, many others had crossed the roadblocks surrounding Nablus and only here were they informed that they were not permitted to continue on their way.The lack of coordination inside the army is simply a crying shame: why could they not have told them at the previous roadblocks that they have no chance of leaving Nablus? Is it just negligence on the part of the army? Or do they just want to harass the Palestinians, or perhaps the I.D.F. has nothing better to do with the soldiers, so they make some work for them at Tapuach Junction?8:05A taxi carrying two old nuns to Jerusalem is not allowed to cross. The soldier at the roadblock, who probably was convinced that the two women are not endangering the security of the state, called (probably the Centre High Command) and we heard the answer he got: let them find another way (to Jerusalem). Yes, there certainly is another way: they can walk 48 kilometres (the distance from Tapuach junction to Jerusalem). Of course the taxi with the old nuns also made a U-turn and drove back.A 20 year old settler approached us with the usual monologue (with some variations): go away, you are not allowed here, you are hindering the soldiers! He went to the soldiers, to each one in turn and asked, or rather declared: are they hindering you?! The soldiers either didn’t want to answer or they didn’t have anything to say, as there was no way to say that we were interfering. This angered the chap even more and he screamed hotly at me: you stinking left-winger! You only harm the state! If you’ll get in the way of the soldiers I’ll slap you! 8:25 a.m.On our way from the roadblocks to the car we came across a soldier who asked us where we were from, we answered him and asked in return: where are you from? He pointed towards the hills in the east and said: “from here”. He continued: do you know that you are not allowed to be here; it is a closed military area. When we pointed out his mistake, he did not give up: why do you come here? In order to see what happens at the roadblock, we replied. And what did you find? What did you write – may I see? We replied that he could see but we had no reason to show him. He continued to try and get us to show him what we had written, but we stopped the conversation and left.Huwwara8:45 a.m.Quite heavy traffic in the direction of Nablus, checks were made only of the exceptional, light traffic leaving Nablus. The x-ray machine had been moved.Officer A., spreads calm. Checks are swift and quiet.Three American and Canadian medical students want to get to the hospital in Nablus. They are not allowed through because they do not have the necessary documents. A., and A., the D.C.O. representative, explain the situation to them gently and patiently. There is nothing to be done since it is Sunday today and they cannot contact their embassies to get permits to cross.9:25 a.m.A detainee is held and is released after a few minutes.D.C.O. Huwwara9:40 a.m.Only three people are waiting outside the D.C.O., they have just arrived, two women and a man. One of the women, middle aged, says she is ill, and she looks ill. We asked the soldier at the entrance to the D.C.O. to let her in. He said that an officer will come to her in a short while, but when the officer did not come we went back with our request and he agreed to let her in.Huwwara10:00 a.m.About 20 – 30 people at the exit from Nablus – the checks are quick and take place quietly.The usual sights: women carrying babies, a quite old woman, an elderly man who leans on his stick and, after every one or two steps, stops to rest. All of these people have to march the 700 – 800 metres between the two taxi stands.A soldier on guard at the roadblock holds his weapon horizontally, pointing at the faces of the Palestinians. Perhaps because the crossing at the roadblock is so smooth we have the opportunity to look at these sights and they are discordant, they jangle.11:20 a.m.We leave the roadblock.