Abu Dis and the areaSunday, 15.7.2007, morningObservers: Avital T., Meira A., Dahlia K. (reporter)Sheikh Saed 06:45It is quiet. Quiet. It is chilly (still). It is very dirty. There are two guards up hill, one BP man at the foot of the hill, and one (the commander of the checkpoint) in moving. We spoke with the commander (he is as hospitable as always). He is for “soft hand” and does not understand at all why one has to activate force. All people with a blue ID and those with permits pass easily. Others are being checked throughly and their business is “being considered seriously”. If they are found reliable, they can pass.Abu Dis – the Wall street, 07:10 It is quiet, there are no people.Container – 07:30There are no detainees, traffic flows on both directions.Zeitim passage (the back side) – 08:10There are over forty people waiting in the shed. We waited with them in order to see when the DCO will be openned. At 08:30 it was not open. We called all kinds of people in charge, some were not available. Finally we were told that they are about to open, and indeed, the DCO was openned at 08:50. The people waiting stormed the entrance. We asked for an additional gate for women to be openned, and it worked.A chemist from Abu Dis told us that they don’t let her take a course in Jerusalem, Her laboratory got some new instruments (medical instruments, as far as we understood). The lab people have to be instructed as to how to use them. The woman we met has been trying for the last two weeks to go through the checkpoint. Maybe she will make it today