Jubara & Anabta, Tuesday, 18.4.06, AMObservers: Ruti C, Maya M, Elinoar B (reporting); Guest: MashaJubara, 06:15-07:00The commander of the unit manning the checkpoint lets us enter the village, but shows us a valid “restricted area command” signed by the brigade commander as required. We are not allowed to roam the checkpoint area, not even stand outside the village gate. We go up to what was formerly the Schoolchildren’s Gate (22). The few agricultural workers are let in, and the school buses pass safely.Anabta, 09:00-10:15 On our way back from Beit Iba we stop at Anabta. The lines are shorter than usual. It is quite clear why: punishment. The taxi drivers tell us that even Shufa, Saffrin & Beit Lid inhabitants, who don’t have an alternative exit way can’t go out by cars, but it turns out this is not so. The three soldiers manning the roadblock behave bizarrely, scream at the Palestinians to move back, etc, but also joke with them. They smoke, eat matzo. One of them behaves in a really frenetic way. He speaks fluent Arabic but punishes transgressors (e.g. people who cross a virtual red line) by switching to Hebrew. The sergeant says: “This is the way he is, he screams at me as well”.They are eager to talk to us. One of them says “I haven’t seen my father for years, and we’ve hardly eaten for the last three days”. And: “I’m not a British soldier, I can’t stand like a mannequin.”All this during a lull in the traffic. In between people are sent back to Tulkarm. Particularly maddening is the sight of a driver of a post bus with yellow [Israeli] license plate, blue [Israeli] ID from East Jerusalem, who is forced to take out the heavy crates and bags, load them onto a cart and wheel them (after a perfunctory check) about 20 metres to a waiting Palestinian van. Why? Why not.