Huwwara, 04.07.2007, Wednsday PMObservers: Michal S., Milat S., Yfat D. (reporting) + two guestsThe gates to Marda and Zeita are open.14:20 Zaatra/Tapuach. Three cars are waiting to be checked form the west. Twelve cars are waiting from the north.Huwwara village. We notice a wrecked Israeli car at the side of the road. A group of villagers standing next to it, offering water, obviously alarmed. There is a settler woman inside the car. She seems unhurt, but in a state of shock. We called an ambulance. After several minutes a border police jeep arrived. After checking the state of the woman the soldiers moved on to shout at the people who were standing several meters away, to get back home.‘No’ Taisir tried to explain, ‘they were trying to help’.‘Oh?’ said the soldier and continued his shouting.A military ambulance arrived.14:39 -the checkpoint at the end of the village is manned. Five cars are waiting to be checked.Yitzhar/Burin. Checkpoint unmanned.Huwwara CP. At the bus stop there is a soldier securing two settlers who are trying to hitch a ride.As we approach, the soldiers put a detainee inside the compound. The soldier is holding the notebooks of the young man. He is prudently searching all of the man’s belongings.The pedestrian shed is full. The checkpoint commander says a segregation policy is implemented today: young people ages 16-35 from Tulkarem, Jenin and Nables are not allowed southwards.The soldier takes the detainee out of the compound, checks his notebooks again, puts him back in and examines his mobile phone for a long time. The young man is released.Waiting time for pedestrians leaving Nables is between half an hour and one hour. (The queue has shortened considerably since our arrival, and so has the waiting time).We notice several young men who are turned back because of the segregation policy.14:58 -four cars are waiting to enter Nables. The soldier examines IDs, car permits, and car – inside and out. The commander of the M. police speaks to him to say he doesn’t need to check so ardently the cars going inside Nables.A soldier screams at the pedestrians: ‘what’s going on? Everyone at this checkpoint shut your mouths!’M. police commander Y., calls the police because I crossed the white line (by 50 cm.) painted by the army to farther us from the checking zone. DCO officer R. argues with him about it. The newly appointed checkpoint commander explains why we shouldn’t be at the checkpoint at all. ‘They (the soldiers) are looking at you (instead of at the checkpoint) they are not used to it’.Some market stalls are now at the other side of the CP, at the Nables end. At the taxicab parking lot there are two cold beverage vendors (the army did not allow this before).12 cars are waiting to exit Nables. The checking of each car takes between two to three minutes with short breaks in between. As always, the passengers get off the car at a distance, only then is the driver is allowed to continue. For instance: several women get off a car. The car is checked very meticulously. Than the bags need to be put through the x- ray machine. A woman is carrying a huge bag. Three man carrying a flour bag together.The M. policewoman is extremely rude to the people being checked. She commands with her hands and screams at the people when they do something which displeases her.After the young men are checked, they are sent with their belongings to the x- ray machine at the other side of the checkpoint. Playing hurdles: under two rails, into the hole in the fence, over two rails, the machine: putting bag at one side going to the other to catch it, and all the way back to receive the ID at the hands of the MP.15:29 -There are many students returning from Nables. Pedestrian shed is half full. People who are waiting near by for other family members to finish the procedure, are chased away occasionally by one of the soldiers- ‘Imshi, Imshi, Yalla, Ruh’. Next to where the market used to be is a field. We notice a group of military men chasing away a couple of shepherds and their sheep.16:00 Beit Furiq. Five cars are waiting to enter Nables. Six cars are waiting to exit. Five people are waiting to be checked. Cars are checked intermittingly from each side. The trunks of the cars are also being checked. Here also, the police woman uses sovereign hand movements to order the people around.Taxicab drivers say that today Beit Furic is ok, but El Bidan is really difficult. People are detained for no reason, the soldiers are being difficult. (It is worth noting, since the following day, an ambulance was detained at that checkpoint, consequently a patient died. The incident was reported by ‘haaretz’, as well as in out reports).16:00 Huwwara – (Milat reporting). The policewoman claimed that one of the people cursed her and began cursing him back. One of the soldiers immediately pointed his gun at him at close range. The situation was potentially violent. She: yelling at him, Him: not understanding what she means to do. The gun was at a distance of 10 cm from the man. After several minutes the event wore off with the help of other soldiers, and the ‘suspect’ was allowed to continue.16:29 Huwwara. Few people are in the shed. The soldier is pointing his gun from close range at the people being checked.An Israeli citizen and her small child are detained upon exit from Nables, the soldier says he will try to speed things up, but they end up waiting for 45 minutes.There is no DOC officer present.16:45 -seven cars are waiting to exit Nables. When the passengers of the car are young, they get sent walking, back to the pedestrian exit. We note more people who are sent back because of the segregation policy.‘I’m not doing anything wrong, why can’t I pass? Why?’‘You can’t’ they say. And he turns back in anger.‘Can he pass with a dog?’‘No he can’t’‘Let him pass, go on’The people exiting Nablus are fewer now. There are 15 people waiting to be checked.A squadron commander for the MP agrees with me that the reason there are less people at the checkpoints these days is that people have given up many activities.When we ask how long the segregation will go on, he replies that it’s not his decision.A soldier finds a woman’s permit on the ground. We ask what will be done with it. They say they will contact the DCO to try and locate the woman.Yaki asks the checkpoint commander if they can drill the soldiers, since there aren’t many people. The commander agrees. I wonder if what they refer to is the disgraceful military drill to which I have been twice witness: one of the Palestinians is ordered to pass as if intending to harm the soldiers. The soldiers simulate real time reaction, shouting and ordering away at gun point the other Palestinians who, needless to say, are not privy to the event’s hidden meaning.17:55 -five cars are waiting to be checked on either direction.,br>Huwwara village. Checkpoint is manned. Ten cars are waiting to be checked.18:07 Zaatra/Tapuach. Two cars from the north. 25 cars from the west. People have been waiting an average of 45 minutes. The occupants of one car tell that checking has been halted because one of the drivers honked his horn. Checkpoint commander S. affirms this.‘So you punished the other cars because one of the drivers honked his horn?’‘No, it’s not punishment, we just detained them.’The cars are being checked very meticulously. The soldiers also ask ridiculous questions in order to amuse themselves.‘Fish net in this zone’ says Sefi, meaning that today’s checking a is not random as usual.I ask why there is only one lane open for checking. He says there aren’t enough soldiers. He called for backup but none was sent. 18:30 -we leave and call the army line. We ask how come the army doesn’t have enough soldiers. Adi answered. She called half an hour later to say they were going to send more soldiers.