Qalandiya, Mon 6.12.10, Afternoon

 15:30, Qalandiya:  Only two internal passageways were operating when we reached Qalandiya CP and there was no change during our shift.  In spite of that, lines remained fairly short and there were no lines at all in the northern shed, perhaps because fewer people were about due to the cold and intermittent drizzle.  The (female) soldier sitting in the post near the CP entrance did not once lock the carousel/turnstile all afternoon.

 Unfortunately, even when the CP appears to be functioning, it is a sad and repulsive place, with garbage strewn all over and an extremely strong stink of urine.

 When we arrived, three young men were standing in Passageway 5, the entrance to the DCO offices.  All they wanted was to go to the Post Office (to pay for an auto license, etc.), but because the passageway remained locked while they waited, they missed the boat – the Post Office closes at 3:30 PM.

 Suddenly a young man appeared, dressed in summer clothes and leaning on a cane.  He also stood before the gate in Passageway 5 inorder to request a permit to return home to Gazaafter undergoing abdominal surgery.  (He looked really terrible and very weak – one hand clutching the cane and the other holding his stomach to relieve the pain.)  We phoned headquarters in an attempt to be helpful and were put through immediately to Hassan, the DCO representative, who quickly had the gate opened.  Ten minutes later the patient reappeared, permit in hand.

 At 16:50 we saw a young woman in Passageway 4 being "harassed" by the magnetometer.  She had already taken off her coat and shoes (in the late-afternoon cold of Jerusalem), and even though she was barefoot, the machine continued to complain about her.  Finally, she took a barette out of her hair, allowing it to cascade around her, and that seemed to solve the problem.  These machines are definitely misogynists.

 We left Qalandiya at 5 PM and returned to Jerusalem via Lil/Jabba and Hizmeh CPs.