Sources: Israel to allow Palestinian cars through Nablus' Huwwara checkpoint
Date: 01 / 07 / 2009 Time: 16:39
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Nablus - Ma'an Exclusive - Israel will allow Palestinians to drive cars
through the Huwwara military checkpoint, the main access point into the West
Bank city of Nablus, Palestinian sources said.

According to a recent Israeli decision the pedestrian passage most travelers
must pass through will be closed completely, and instead Palestinians will
cross the checkpoint by car, the source said.

Israeli sources, however, said the only change at Huwwara would be an easing
of checks at the military point for pedestrian traffic.

If the first rumor is true, the change-over at Huwwara will drastically ease
travel from the northern West Bank to the south and central regions. As it
stands the massive military post forces 90% of travelers to disembark from
cars and taxis, walk through the turnstiles and undergo a search when
passing from north to south.

The checkpoint, which was erected during the second Intifadah, has changed
the structure of life at the outskirts of the city, where both market areas
and taxi services work around the crowds waiting to be searched and
questioned.

It was unclear whether the cars passing through the military zone would be
subjected to long checks. Late in 2008 Israel eased restrictions on cars
travelling through the area, previously restricted to permit holders and
humanitarian cases. Though women over 35 and men over 50 were permitted to
drive through following changes last year, wait times were often hours.

If the pedestrian walk-way is to remain intact with lighter and random
checks on Palestinians travelling through the point, traffic will likely
move much more quickly.

The infrastructure around Huwwara checkpoint was expanded in 2008 and 2009
with new parking lots, larger shelters for pedestrians and paved walkways.
According to the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs
(OCHA) it was the only checkpoint around the city that was expanded in
recent months, with infrastructure around other checkpoints removed, but
random checks remaining prevalent.

***Updated 21:58 Bethlehem time