Abu Dis, Container (Wadi Nar), Ras Abu Sbitan (Olive Terminal), Sheikh Saed, Mon 21.7.08, Morning
6:am - we decided to check again on Sheih Saed, where we have not been for a while.The place gets fortified more and more and it seems that it is just ment to keep people out as much as possible. Very few people were waiting to come in and it moved fairly fast. The place just looks terrible. One worker told us there are 300 men coming in every day. Half of them with blue IDs and the other half with permits. The army has different numbers.
We moved on to Wadi Naar. The CP is never just a routine procedure. A few taxies were waiting , some claimed they were there for an hour and a half. More taxies came and some were detained for a short time and some for a long. The soldiers from the BP, were not willing to explain to us why they detained some for so long. In general the atmoshere was tense and very unfriendly to all . The Palestinien felt very belligerant and we felt very frustrated. Some drivers and their passengers complained bitterly for being late to where they were going and having had to identify themselves three times.
Generally the situation was very discouraging and seemed never ending.
We decided to check on the Zeitun terminal from within. It was empty. By 8:am there is hardly a soul coming in. The drivers who take people on the little buse to their destination claimed it is all over before 7. It seems to me that unless we can be at the CP at 6am we hardly have anything to report , except in Wadi Naar, which is in the heart of Palestinien territory The crucial hours are 5-6:30 in the morning