HUWWARA, BEIT FURIK, BEIT IBA, Thursday 24 June 2004 AM Observers: Aharona M., Yael B-S., Micky P., Ofra C., Dina A., Yudit A-D. (reporting) colour = red>There was only light traffic through all the checkpoints, as the Israel army was operating in Nablus, and the town was under curfew. Passage was generally quick, and at most points there was a representative of the District Co-ordinating Office (DCO) [the army section that handles civilian matters].Huwwara South (Ofra and Yudit)08:15 – There were about 20 people standing in line, and 15 detainees. The DCO representative was attentive to the Palestinians, and spoke to them respectfully rather than with his gun. His questions were to the point, he was flexible, and he let them pass even without a permit. We were able to talk to him, and he handled every case we referred to him, and usually let them pass — including those who’d been turned down by the checkpoint commander.One of the soldiers shouted and waved his weapon around, threatening and occasionally closing the checkpoint briefly whenever a Palestinian stepped out of line or spoke up. This same soldier insisted on “arranging” the line of people waiting and made the detainees sit on the ground.10:40 – Another two or three detainees joined the 15 who’d been waiting all morning. No progress had been made. The DCO was trying, but apparently the General Security Services (GSS) was overloaded. The DCO officer apologized for the delay; it was not in his hands [the GSS — also known by its Hebrew acronym as the Shabak or Shin Bet — cross-checks the detainees’ details, which are phoned in by the checkpoint soldiers, against its central list of security suspects; until security clearance comes back to the checkpoint from the GSS, the soldiers hold the detainees’ ID cards, thus keeping them virtually imprisoned until that point; the check often takes up to four hours or more].Huwwara North (Dina, Yael)08:20 – This site is being rebuilt ; there are concrete mixers, large cement blocks and a crane .Things were quiet here. People passed through quickly; there was no shouting or waving of rifles. The checkpoint commander and his soldiers behaved humanely.Here, too, there was a DCO representative who was flexible. When we spoke to him about a young boy who had arrived from a hospital in Nablus without a permit, he let him go through.Beit Furik (Micky, Ninette, Aharona)08:25 – There were very few people here because of the curfew. The soldiers were relatively polite; they spoke normally, not threateningly. A young man who wanted to take his sick father through was denied entry. The soldiers refused to check his documents with the GSS, claiming that if they were to check everyone, the line would stretch on interminably. We contacted the army’s “humanitarian” hotline where they were sympathetic, but powerless to intervene. We persisted, and finally the man was checked out and allowed to go through with his father.11:00 – There was an unannounced road-block on Route 60, near the gas station between the Jit junction and Beit Iba. A bus let the passengers off. We continued on. Beit Iba (brief stop)11:10 – Towards Nablus: there were very few people headed this way and they went through quickly. The soldiers were reasonable.From Nablus: There was no metal detector . They’d laid down a new concrete floor with designated waiting lanes. In the centre was a shaded area where about 50 people were waiting in a semi-circle.Some of the soldiers were rude, loud and bothersome. We had some restraining influence on their attitudes.A family with children arrived. A soldier shouted at the father for lying, and he claimed that the soldier was mixing him up with someone else. When we intervened, the soldier agreed to check again and admitted that there’d been a misunderstanding. The family went through.There were about 10 detainees whom we left to the care of the second shift.