I often use Route 375 travelling east toward Bethlehem, and then pick up the
Tunnel Road heading south into Jerusalem.
From the moshav (rural community)
where I live, it’s a distance of 10 miles (16
kilometers). But there is a shortcut of just
6 miles (10 km) if you travel south through
the so-called “West Bank.” That route includes
two Israeli army checkpoints, the
first one into the “occupied territories”
and then the second one out.
One day, about half a mile before the
first checkpoint, a white Toyota did a sudden
U-turn and we almost crashed. This
guy is crazy I thought. Then I saw eight
or nine people crammed into that four door
sedan, three in the front and five
or six in the back. Suddenly, 100 yards in
front of me, about 10 Palestinians jump
out from behind the trees, climb over the
roadside barrier, and squash into another
blue Toyota. Both vehicles speed away in
a scene reminiscent of a Hollywood car
chase. It’s the Wild West Bank!
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