Al Nashshash, Bethlehem, Etzion DCL, Wed 9.7.08, Morning
Nabi Unis
Bethlehem - Rahel checkpoint: The passage was fast, efficient and quiet. We also heard nothing from the interior room that would suggest a large crowd. At the entrance to the wall there is only one turnstile and soldiers let groups enter the building, so they have control over the flow of people. It's true that soldiers at the inspection posts are also trained. All in all the waiting time is much shorter now than before, but people still had to wait for an hour and a half and sometimes longer. One of the officers told us that in two weeks there will be another entrance. The entrance will be through a turnstile and it will be used for medical events, elder people and women - a "humanitarian" turnstile. The officer also said that there was a shed on the other side of the wall. We shall ask next week the ecumenicals about that.
The soldiers have started all over again to send people back to the DCL to renew their hand prints. One person said that he has already renewed his prints two weeks ago. Ever since he didn't have any problem passing, but now he is refused. When he was on his way to work this morning he was told to renew his prints again. It didn't make a difference when we asked that they let him pass and promised that he would renew the prints on the next day. Another day of work was wasted. There must be a way to make process easier. Since the whole hand print thing is arbitrary why can't they give the person a notification ahead of time?
Al Nashshash: Someone came to us for advise. This time it was a good thing we waited.
Nabi Unis: We were asked for help with the usual problems: a person was denied passage by the GSS and the police.
Etzion DCL: It was extremely hot outside. There were about 80 people in the waiting hall and the air conditioner wasn't working. Most of those waiting were young people waiting for their magnetic card. As there weren't enough active posts and not enough men power, some people waited from the morning until the end of the day. They weren't given any service and were told to return on the next day and start the procedure all over again.
A person complained that his previous employer didn't pay his fee to the employment exchange in spite of the fact that he had to pay for a considerable amount from the price of the permit. We gave him the number of Kav La'Oved.