Qalandiya, Ar-Ram, Mon. 03.09.07 amObservers: Roni P, Ruti R (reporting)6:45 – Beit Hanina A very long line of vehicles en route to Jerusalem.7:00 – Ar-Ram About 6 soldiers are at the checkpoint which allows rapid passage for children on their way to school. Almost no line, and almost no check of bags. Also the passage of vehicles was fast and without delay. The officer S, whose name has already been mentioned positively in the past regarding efforts that were taken to make things easier for travel to schools and kindergartens, meetings with principals and nursery school teachers, allowed quick movement without checks this mornig of parents and school buses. Everything seemed so well organized and smooth that we almost forgot that this is still an occupation. We saw the other side of the occupation when we returned from Qalandiya, there was another commander , and this one presented himself as someone from the extreme right who supports Lieberman as head of the government because he knows what to do with “them”. 7:45 – Qalandiya Three buses from Hebron with families of prisoners in the Ofer jail were still waiting in the bus parking lot. People said that they left Hebron at 5:30. At about 7:30, they entered lane 5 and by 9:30, all went through. We were shocked by the site of the toilet facilities outside. The building was destroyed inside, floors torn up, the toilet was disgusting in a way hard to describe. We spoke with the the UN representative who was accompanying the buses that it is unseemly that there are not portable toilets there and that perhaps they would be able to get some. We also spoke with the DCL representative who said that there were toilets there and “they destroy everything — the post boxes that we set up for them, they steal everything, they are animals”. In the area at the entrance, there were over 150 seated and waiting for the DCL. At 7:00 a representative of the DCL collected the permits of those who wanted them extended, in order to check them out during the morning, and to write on them an additional date at which they would be requested to come in another two weeks in order to get the work permits.What happens is that someone who wishes to extend his work permit must waste two full days to do so. At 11:00, the request forms were returned of those submitted at 7:00; and at 10:00, another collection of forms was made. The people sitting in the area know that they have no choice but to wait until they “have mercy on them” in order to get the request stamped with the day on which they will get the permit. During the day, the DCL handles about 30 permits of those who want to enter into Israel and who have all the right papers. D, the commander of the checkpoint together with L from the security service are responsible for the order at the passing. People go through the passages and there are no long lines, but every time somebody tells us that our very presence helps to speed things up, open things, helps in searches and as reminders. When we left at about 11:00, we were approached by 4 men sitting in the area who came from Gaza to Nablus for open heart surgery. Those who underwent surgery were sitting bandaged around their chests and on their legs. They just got out of the hospital and they have no permit to return to Gaza. Someone told them to go to the Palestinian DCL in Ramallah. They went there and were told that they would get the permit in two days. They have no place to stay and no money. Before we were able to finish dealing with the issue, they disappeared. This was the second time we were confronted by such issues. Hannah B said that they must get the permits from the Palestinian DCL and that the hospital in Nablus knows this. So what’s there to do?