Bethlehem, Etzion DCL, Sun 9.3.08, Morning
7:00 Bethlehem: The sign of the closure
of today are easy to see along the Bethlehem road. No workers on the sides of the road and no minibuses or employers around. At the terminal one booth only is open and there is almost no work for it. On the other hand, there are many security people around. After making their presence felt on the Israeli side, they take their seats on chairs placed at the upper gallery and look at us from above talking to the Ecumenic standing on the Palestinian side. Those who cross over are all humanitarian cases and although there are very few of them (among them the three toddlers who come several times a week for dialysis with one of their parents), it takes half an hour to cross. We leave the terminal early. One of the people standing outside says to the woman from the Ecumenical group "You have to come tomorrow", meaning that then she'll see what really goes on here.
8:00 Etsion: Quiet and hazy. One of the security cases who is petitioning the High Court comes to sign on the documents. We get a few new petitioners and fill out forms. Two employers are spotted cursing and leaving the DCO with rapid steps, their employees running after them trying to figure out what will happen to them now. It gives one the shivers to watch the scene.
We leave at 10:00 to return to Jerusalem.
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