Etzion DCL, Mon 17.1.11, Afternoon

14:00 pm, Etzion DCL:  some 20 people are waiting around the turnstile, and another 15 are waiting inside. No one enters, no one exits. It is quiet. The soldiers, it seems, have gone off for a siesta and have not yet returned.

14:20 pm.  We call the Moked.  Half an hour later, probably at our instigation, one of those waiting emerges, an elderly man who had obtained a magnetic card. He had arrived at 8:00 in morning and waited "only" 7 hours.

15:00   pm.  Four people exit with their magnetic cards. 

 15:10 pm.  Seven of those waiting are allowed in; thirteen continue to wait.  Six more exit, one by one.

A man peddling food told us that two weeks ago his car had been confiscated at the Meitar crossing.  Today he was told he must pay a huge sum for "storage of his car for two weeks."

A young Jordanian visiting the country came up to us. According to him, he had been summoned by the Shabak for 8 o'clock this morning.  He arrived on time and waited.  At 15:30 he was taken in and immediately told to come back tomorrow.  He explained that he must return to Jordan tomorrow and asked to be seen today, but nothing helped.

A woman told that her daughter is hospitalized in Jerusalem and must undergo an operation the day after tomorrow.  She would like a permit to enter Jerusalem and be with her daughter.  She has no magnetic card, and without it cannot receive a permit.  She had been waiting in line since the morning for the magnetic card, but was been unable to enter because whenever the crossing is opened the men crowd her out.  We called the Moked and they apparently dealt with her problem.  In a short while she entered and obtained her card.

15:55 pm.  Another five persons were allowed in.  The remaining went in at 16:15 pm. No one who had come today remained unattended. The hall was empty, a spectacle we had not seen in a long time.