Anabta and Jubara

Anabta and Jubara, Sunday, February 5, 2006, PM Observers: Ada H., Alix W. (reporting)Anabta15:43 We count 18 northbound vehicles waiting to pass, as we walk up to the soldiers the taxi drivers waiting say there is a rolling checkpoint [i.e. unscheduled, mobile] at the Jit Junction, some say they waited 2-3 hours. There are 3 soldiers that we can see, one checking the IDs and the vehicles and the other 2 facing in the opposite direction towards the passing Palestinians with their rifles pointed (later we heard Y. from the tower). The soldiers tried to be courteous and worked as efficiently as possible being so understaffed. The officer was particularly kind, we heard him say some very kind words to an elderly lady passing. We phoned the DCO [District Coordination Office of the IDF Civil Authority, that oversees passage permits] to send more backup so things would move quicker, but the hours we were there we didn’t see anyone arrive. But the soldier did succeed in getting the vehicles and the people through, especially from the south side. We saw only one vehicle pass from the north side in the hour we were there. Walking back to the car we hear from more people that anyone whose ID shows a Jenin residence is turned back whereever they are. The road is really bad and there is hardly space to walk, one side of the line of vehicles are mud puddles, on the other razor wire. Through the razor wire the valley is lovely, the red carpet of poppies is even darker and thicker than last week. 16:32 - We leave AnabtaJubara16:45 Here too there are new soldiers, at first they attempt to stop us from going to park next to Abu Ghatem’s house, but then we go in to park. There is one detainee that has been there for ½ hour and a young boy of 10 or 12 that doesn’t have any ID (at that age no one does), but the soldiers won’t let him cross to Tulkarm, then we see he has disappeared. We cross over to the other side, there is an Israeli couple with 5 very young children (aged 5 years to one-year-old twins), they are crossing with a many bundles and bags, food, clothing after a return from visiting the husband’s elderly mother. They are asked to stand away and look the other way while a female soldier brings the dog over to sniff. We walk back to the other side of the road, there is 1 detainee, a different one, when I ask what is going on, the one soldier ignores me, and the other one says, “Of course he's being checked." Then the other soldier picks up the two- way radio with the ID in his hand. 17:34 - We leave Jubara.