Bethlehem, Etzion DCL, Tue 2.10.07, Morning

05:40, Bethlehem CP. Total closure for the whole week of Succoth holiday. The CP is almost empty accordingly; only the happy few who hold the right permits can go to work.  <p>

Leaving the CP, we see a group of about seven women held in a shed, just a few meters away from the entrance to Bethlehem CP, guarded by border police. They were apprehended while trying to sneak into Jerusalem, probably to work. No one of them holds the necessary documents, not even IDs. A polite officer explains that they are awaiting the police; he won’t let us speak with them, though. About forty minutes later we came back – one woman had been released after being identified; the police have not yet arrived.<p>

08:00, Ezyon DCL. The DCL, we are told, is functioning as usual. There are about six people.