Huwwara north & south

Huwwara Wednesday, 2/2/05 PMEdna K.,Daliah V.,Deborah L.An unbelievably rainy day at Huwwara. We arrived at 13:30 . We went straight to Huwwara North because as we drove by Huwwara South we noticed that there were no detainees and very little pedestrian or vehicle traffic. The North was also rather empty and there were 7 soldiers on duty, one of whom was the DCO representative, N. Two computers were in use to check IDs. Three detainees were waiting for a more thorough check from GSS. They were released within an hour. Through out the time we were there we found the DCO representative very responsive to our questions and requests and he was able to hurry things along in the South as well by phoning the soldiers there. We didn't make any phone calls because all problems were solved through him or the officer on duty. The diffulty was in watching the women with very young infants bundled in thick blankets, small children, the handicapped, the sick,those with suitcases or packages, and the scantly dressed trying to make it through the pouring rain as fast as they could. Some slipped, some couldn't avoid stepping into deep puddles or didn't see where they were heading because of the strong rains. At Huwwara South the turnstiles were not working so the line had to form in the rain on the side. Luckily there was never a very long line. When the rain fell in torrents the soldiers did not step out to check cars (except for ambulances) so there were always 6 or 7 vehicles lined up. Suitcases were checked in the place where the detainees stay so as not to get the contents wet and dirty. There was a nineteen year old detainee at the South who was held because he had left his permission pass at home in Nablus. He had called his mother to bring it to him. When she finally made it after about an hour and a half, he saw her from the distance and wanted me to run to get the pass so she wouldn't have to walk all the way. Like any mother she wanted to bring it herself and she waited at least another half hour until they checked his ID by phone to see with her own eyes that he was going to pass through. To see the anxious and concerned look on her face as she waited in the rain for her son was poignant. Just one of the many little stories of people just trying to live their daily lives regardless of the obstacles. At one point one of the biggest and most complete rainbows I've every seen formed in the direction of Nablus. The contrast between the suffering and the beauty seems to be especially sharp at checkpoints.We left at 15:30 . On the way to Huwwara and back again, Tapuach Intersection was almost empty and there were no surprise checkpoints.