Barta'a-Reihan, Tura-Shaked, Ya'bed-Dotan
14:30 – Tura – Shaked Checkpoint – The checkpoint is quiet and there is little traffic.
14:55 – A'anin Checkpoint – We drove two cheerful women to the checkpoint. About 35 people and 3 tractors are waiting to return to the village after their days' work. The soldiers opened the checkpoint on time and in a short while the entire group of people who were waiting as well as those who arrived later had crossed.
15:30 – On our way to Yaabed Dotan Checkpoint we passed by Reihan – Barta'a checkpoint. All the parking lots as well as the sides of the road are filled with cars. The yellow gate blocking the side road to Yaabed is still closed. The checkpoint is not manned and traffic is moving freely in both directions.
16:00 – Reihan – Barta'a Checkpoint – The parking lot is filled with cars and crowded with people, mostly young men who are returning from work in Israel and the seamline zone. There are only a few women. A few people going in the opposite direction. There is no one patrolling traffic in the parking lot and there is total disorder, characteristic of young people. There is also a bit of business going on as the vendor with his motor scooter sells coffee and cakes. He is only here in the afternoon because he is not permitted to be here in the morning. Another vendor under the shed is selling soft drinks and snacks and offered us refreshing Tamar hindi juice. Someone else is selling fresh fish from crates with ice. A few Palestinians are praying under the awning.
A resident of A'anin tells us that he has a permit to cross at Reihan – Barta'a and A'anin that is valid until 2018, but is no longer allowed to cross at Barta'a. We have heard of other such incidents recently (See report from October 27th).
Our friend H. who used to have a kiosk here and was forced to leave to make way for the settler from Mevo Dotan has closed his kiosk and now makes his living as a driver. He and his father both had traffic accidents. His father remains disabled and he is now the main breadwinner. His leg was injured and he was hospitalized and had to undergo surgery. He insisted on showing us his scar, which was a bit embarrassing. Another person who works in Zichron Yaakov only has a permit to cross at Jalameh which is much further away. He has a permit to spend the night in Israel and comes home only on weekends.
At 16:40 we left the crowded parking lot.