Huwwara, Za’atara, Wednesday 4.4.07, AMNina S., Hanna A. (reporting)The drudgery of checkpoints and unexpected happeningsResidents of Jenin aged 16-35 may not travel southwards of Za’atara.7.35 – opposite the entrance to Ariel a military car is keeping a watch.7.39 – The metal arm at the western entrance to Marda is open. A heap of asphalt debris blocks the way in.7.45 Za’ataraThe CP is manned by reserves. The IDs are checked by Military police.From the west there is one car, a military police girl checking and 2 soldiers watching.From the north – 3 active CPs. As soon as we parked a lieutenant approached us and checks where we intend to park, then returns to his duties.At the side- a cab. One of it’s passengers tells us they have been detained for 1 and a half hours. They are from Nablus on their way to work in Ramalla. He wants to know what the problem is and complains about the soldiers” they are not good. We are waiting for an hour and a half. I have 6 children at home and grandchildren in a few months”. He is followed by the others, who all come to complain to us. We cannot but agree with them.Commander O. says, the number of one of them came up “bingo” and must be checked. So why may the others not continue? He has done so the day before and got told off! He says they are waiting only ¾ of an hour and if they hay have to wait 15 minutes more he will release them.The ‘Bingo” who seems to have had similar experiences told us he had been working 5 years in Israel and all was fine. He has a work permit and asks us to get him off this wanted list. He cannot remember his ID number. When the IDs were returned 10 minutes later we noted his details and we gave him Sylvia’s number. She may be able to help him. 8.06 -They are leaving.8.12 – Burin CP on road 60 is manned but no line.8.20 HuwwaraIn the field next to the ‘humanitarian’ building there is a new fence that stops cabs from jumping the line out.3 active CPs. In line about 40 people. There is a dog with his trainer and the screening car is working too. From where we stand we watch the cars leaving Nablus. About 6 soldiers tell the passengers to alight; IDs are checked by a girl soldier eating an apple in one hand the ID in the other. Between one car to the next the soldiers take their time chatting. The dog is checking the cars. The CP commander wishes us a good day and asks not to photograph the dog’s activities.8.59 – A VW with 2 well dressed passengers. The dog climbs the bonnet of the cars and leaves his dusty paw marks all over. He then enters the car and climbs on the seats checking it. Before the passengers reenter their car we can see them cleaning the dirty seats.We could not see when cars arrive in line so we timed how many pass in a given time span. In 25 minutes 5 cars passed.9.17 – we “mark’ a young guy on his entrance to the pedestrian line. He emerges at 9.32 – A man seated on a bench next to the entrance path asks for our help;He is from Auwarta, a cab driver who works on the line to Tapuach. A month ago he was stopped by border police on the road in Huwwara. They took his ID and did not return it. He went to the Palestinian and Israeli DCOs and was not issued a new one. He was asked for the number of the jeep, but said if he took it the police would shoot him. And so he may not work and cannot earn a living. At the Palestinian DCO he was told to go to court and swear on the Koran that his ID was taken by border police. This costs 500 NIS, a sum he does not earn in a month. We promised to try and see what can be done but did not raise his hopes to success.9.25 – A detainee is sent to the detainee cubicle. About 15 minutes later he was released.9.45- a Jordanian car arrives in it a driver, an elderly lady (grandma), a young woman, a toddler and a baby. They want to enter town. The soldier does not let them as they do not have a specific entry pass. He is going to check. The car is parked on the side. We called the humanitarian centre. R. is checking. The family is waiting.They arrived the day before though Hussein Bridge and have been touring Israel. Father cannot understand how come he may tour Israel but not enter Nablus. They begin to give up. We call again and R. is trying to send a DCO rep. to the place.10.07 – From where we stand we see some commotion on the road to Beit Furik. It looks like a Palestinian Ambulance, military car, a lorry with a car on its back and many people moving about. More military cars arrive, people continue to enter and leave Nablus. An elderly man carrying plastic bags with food, one tears and the meat in it falls on the path. He collects it to another bag and leaves the torn one on the path.10.20 – The family is still waiting but now father decides to leave and park the car to enter on foot. At that moment R. informs us she is sending a DCO rep. They have given up and we inform her accordingly. We drive towards Beit Furik.A little past the entrance to the military camp, at the road side there are 6 youngster lying in the dust faces downwards Next to them 2 little donkeys, each pulling a small cart laden with rusty crap metal. Soldiers are milling around them commanded by a slender girl lieutenant, her hair gathered in a pony tail. At the back there is a settler’s car and a settler wanders around, organizing and asking questions. A blue police jeep arrives and 2 police men and one police girl emerge.In the mean time, a soldier is handcuffing the boys, their eyes are blinded and 3 of them are taken to the military car and driven off. Just before, a young guy in a Red Cross car arrives and talks to the lieutenant. He explains to her she may not handcuff the kids, makes notes in his book and drives off.The soldiers also load one piece of metal on another car and they all drive off.We photographed all this and called Sarit, maybe the press will take this up.Now only the police men are here. We ask one of them his age and are told by the police men S. (on his arm 3 lines and one fig leaf) not to interfere with the police and leave. We go to the other side of the road. They uncuff the remaining kids, Release the donkeys and drive them into the field and then with the children push the carts into the field too. They practically drown in the high grass but begin to eat it. Meantime S. asks the children some questions in Arabic. The other policeman, (wearing sun glasses, bald, has an Anglo-Saxon accent and is an ignoramus in the history of the state of Israel) turns out to be J. He is a policeman we encountered 2 years ago at Huwwara. The soldiers then decided Huwwara is a closed military installation for us and called the police as we did not leave at once. He asks S. what to do with the scrap metal and S. says “this is only rubbish, not an exhibit”. The bald one asks what S. is going to do with the 3 kids. S. Will take them to the police station for testimony, not for questioning, as they are minors. J. wants the kids’ papers and S. explains that they do not have papers, after all they are minors! To the kids he explains, in Arabic, that this will take about 2 hours and the donkeys and the carts will stay in the field. A few minutes later, after a telephone call, he decides to let them go and sends them to the field. Another guy arrives from the field. He says his brother was one of those taken by the military, and where is he now? The young one of the 3 is his cousin.Having finished with the kids S. takes time to talk to us. “I am letting them go. Do you have something to do with them? J. joins the conversation – “if you want to see more of this go to Balata and see what it’s like there”. He threatens us that he can stop us for parking at the road side and that for crossing the road in a forbidden place. He takes our IDs, goes to jeep and after some moments returns them to us.11.07 – we started on our way back.11.08 – Burin CP is manned and a few cars in line. At the side of the road some people waiting, but we drove on. We were very tired.11.12 – Za’atara – From North 20 cars in line, in the VIP line, i.e. for Israelis, there are 3 plastic barriers, so we have to slow down and make a slalom passing next to the CP.From the west, no line.10.20 – next to the deserted house opposite Marda there is an army vehicle watching.