Za’atra/Tapuach, Huwwara and Beit Furiq 29 November 2006 Watchers: Tushka K., Ilana H., Nina S (reporting from Beit Furiq) Chana A. (reporting from Huwwara)On the one hand things are easier and on the other harder. Limitations on the movement of residents of the towns related to their ages have been called off, but there are ‘stringent inspections’.On road 4765 there are heaps of dirt. There are no people waiting.7:50 a.m. Marda – openZeita – openZa’atra/Tapuach7:56 a.m. There are no vehicles in the queue from the west.From the direction of Nablus there are two checkpoints. The queue of cars looks long but we will count them when we leave.7:59 a.m.A bus on its way from Nablus to Ramallah is sent to the car park. Its passengers (women, men, old and young) have to alight for an inspection of ID cards… one of the passengers tells us that it takes him three and a half hours to travel to Ramallah every day. He has already been on his way since 6:00 a.m. He informs us that in Ramallah too the shops will not be open today and tomorrow but he doesn’t know why.A few moments later a military policewoman comes with the ID cards, stands at the entrance to the bus and calls the passengers by name. A soldier with his weapon aimed at chest height guards her.A lorry driver is also sent to wait until the completion of the inspection. The commander wants to know who among the passengers can translate what he says from Hebrew to Arabic and one of them volunteers. At the end of the conversation the driver is allowed to continue on his way.When the commander had time (he did not identify himself by name) he says that ‘everyone can cross’ and also orders us to remain in the area of the car park and the pavement.8:10 a.m.We left and counted twenty cars waiting to from the direction of Nablus.8:20 a.m.At the roadblock in the direction (of) from Borin there were five cars in the queue.In Huwwara village the shops are closed but there are people in the street. We thought that maybe we had arrived earlier than usual (for our shift) and people had not yet started their working day. On the way back we saw that the village was completely shut up, even though there were no more army forces than normal. Zachariah informed us that the village is under curfew. The pretext: school children threw stones at vehicles.Huwwara8:22 a.m. On our way to the roadblock students from A-Nejach start to talk to us about the roadblock and about the university. The roadblock ‘is OK today’. However, the university is closed. There are clashes between the Fatah and Hamas.At the roadblock there are three checkpoints for pedestrians leaving including a ‘humanitarian queue’ (used by men aged forty and over, women and children and, of course, people with medical infirmities). The military policemen change over from time to time and so, at times, a military policewoman checks the men. Men have to go through the whole repertoire – approaching the female/male soldier with his ID card, moving back, lifting his shirt, turning round, turning up his trousers.The x-ray machine is in use and those carrying baggage are sent to be checked while the soldier in the pedestrian checkpoint keeps their ID cards, this is a possible means of mislaying an ID card… a young man is delighted that finally he has completed the whole procedure and starts to walk south, we remind him that he hasn’t got his ID card.The vehicle checkpoints function alternately.Today two DCO representatives are present, one of them functions as an inspector at the checkpoint for vehicles entering.In spite of all this the queue of those wishing to leave does not number under a hundred, in our estimation. As already noted, everyone can leave, there are no studies, lots of students are returning home and the inspections are meticulous. Therefore, a woman who is returning from hospital and who finds it difficult to stand and can’t sit on the bench (which is in constant use by those waiting for others to come through) because it is in the sun, has to wait close to an hour for her nephew (!!). We approach Y., when we see that the nephew is held up for a long time, and he produces the clichés “what can I do?” and “they’ll think I am showing favouritism”, however, still he goes to find out what is happening but the nephew is already almost through.The pace of the ‘humanitarian’ queue is, however, quicker. We timed it at 7 – 10 minutes.The queue of cars exiting is also long and the waiting time is lengthy. A bus which we saw when we arrived was kept waiting all the time we were at the roadblock, about an hour and a half (!!). When we left at 10:50 a.m., it was still in the queue.Pedestrians come over to us. Some of them welcome us, are interested in who we are, say thank you and there are those who leach curses.8:50 a.m.The inspection of vehicles leaving is interrupted because the soldiers go for a meal break. Y., the commander and the two DCO representatives are at the checkpoint for vehicles entering although at present there are no cars coming in and they don’t go to replace the soldiers who are having a meal break.In fact within five minutes the soldiers finish their meal break and with a wave of his hand, with the obvious meaning ‘come over, one of them instructs a car to come to him.From time to time the soldier in the guard tower uses the tannoy system to give orders to the drivers “all cars, quick, quick ”.9:15 a.m.An elderly disabled woman, leaning on a cane, walks on the road. A soldier ‘spots’ her. First of all he takes her ID card from her and then sends her to the queue.From a distance we see that a humanitarian vehicle is driving on the apartheid road in the direction of the junction.A sergeant major and a major are wandering around the roadblock area. Checking something. It appears that they are going to make some changes at the roadblock. The rumours are that they are going to erect a ‘crossing’ ‘like the one at Qalandya’ in the nearby field. In about a year’s time.10:35 a.m.A young man arrives with a boy who, he says, is his brother. The boy is not allowed to leave unless he is accompanied by one of his parents. Even this act cannot be carried out without ridiculing the person. The soldier mimics the way he talks.10:45 a.m.Even though we did not pin our hopes on the Centre to improve the functioning of the roadblock today, we informed them of the number of people and vehicles and the pace of the inspections. S., told us that she could not do much, apart from asking the DCO to open another lane, because the checks are extensive.We left.Beit Furiq8:55 a.m.There are very few pedestrians crossing. There is a long queue at the exit from Beit Furiq, and it stayed that way for the half an hour we were there. Although from time to time two inspection lanes are opened for cars. There is a lot of chitchat among the soldiers who are not aware of the long queue at Beit Furiq because it is out of their sight. We called the Humanitarian Centre and asked them to get the queue moving.Borin10:53 a.m.The roadblock is staffed but no cars are being checked.Za’atra10:58 a.m. There are thirty cars from the direction of Nablus. There is also a dog handler present. There are a lot of pupils waiting in the car park; they have alighted from a bus.There are seventeen cars in the queue from the west.