Beit Furik, Burin (Yitzhar), Huwwara, Za'tara (Tapuah), Thu 24.1.08, Afternoon

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Observers: 
Avital C. Yehudit L. (reporting and photographing); Natanya translating.
Jan-24-2008
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Afternoon

14.19 Marda.  All the narrow openings have been closed with barbed wire. Only one gate from the north is open.
Zeita ... The gate at the entrance is closed with cement bricks.
Za'tara 15 cars in either directions and 3 checking areas.
Yitzhar-Huwwara.  40 cars in line.  Border police .
Yitzhar on road 60 is not manned.

14.38  Huwwara. A great commotion at the checkpoint.  The owner of the garage at Huwwara was badly hurt when he was working and was brought there in a private car which was travelling with lights flashing to the hospital in Nablus. When he went through the circle next to the checkpoint the settlers were suspicious  and went after him with their guns aimed in his direction.  The soldiers let the car go through quickly. The settlers demanded an explanation.  All these details we got from a Palestinian who had been present.

There were many people both going and coming. The weather is pleasant after the cold days. Many students from the university ( instead of Shabbat).

3 checking posts for the young and the magnometres are squeaking.  Belts, watches, telephones, metal objects  have to be returned to their places afterwards . The three lines are crowded.

One of the reports from the north reported a fine of 1000 shekel which a man of about 50 had to pay because he smoked at the checkpoint and we will send a photograph of a soldier smoking  while on guard.

The side line was working.  The x-ray machine broke down and the car with it drove off. This after N. drew the attention  of the DCO to the fact that an elderly couple had been waiting a long time for the man who was bringing their luggage and were waiting in vain next to the machine.

No pressure of cars entering Nablus. But there are long intervals between the checking of the cars exiting. The car drives up, the passengers get out and wait. There is a dogtrainer and after she has finished the passengers are called one after another sometimes having to do the "CP dance".

16.00 A siren for 3 minutes but nothing has happened.

We asked the representative of the DCO  to hurry this up and he tries to open another land (there are plenty of soldiers) but this does not happen. We phoned N. at the centre for help.

16.19 Beit Furik.
As usual at this time the pressure is from the direction of Nablus and also the shed is full of pedestrians.
People complain and ask us if we are satisfied at what we see. One of them says that on Tuesday he had waited from 6.00 to 9.00 so as to get into Beit Furik. There is only one checking lane for cars in either direction.

16.42 Two young men are detained.  We try to go in the direction of the checking post so as to ask the commander why they have been delayed and immediately hear, "Lady you are hindering me in carrying out my duties" and he refused to answer.  One of the men is put into isolation, the other into the shed. 
 16.55 They are freed and say that they were detained because they had laughed.

16.59 The shed is crowded  as many people want to enter Nablus. Someone wanted to tell us something but from where we were standing we could not hear. One of the people says that the man had forgotten his ID and he is from Beit Dagan  but when we tried to approach the commander the man went back and the same thing happened to a young man who wanted to take his brother who had not ID through.  
We asked B. at the centre to find out why the line was passing so slowly.

17.18 Yitzhar is not manned and Za'tara  has 21cars from the north with 3 checking posts nad 2 from the west. Zeita ..the gate is still closed.