VZCZCXRO8991
PP RUEHROV
DE RUEHJM #0614/01 0931404
ZNY CCCCC ZZH
P 031404Z APR 09
FM AMCONSUL JERUSALEM
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC PRIORITY 4591
INFO RUEHXK/ARAB ISRAELI COLLECTIVE PRIORITY
RHEHNSC/NSC WASHDC PRIORITY
RUEKJCS/JOINT STAFF WASHDC PRIORITY
RUEATRS/DEPT OF TREASURY WASHDC PRIORITY C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 JERUSALEM 000614 
 
SIPDIS 
 
NEA FOR FRONT OFFICE AND IPA; TREASURY FOR AHERN/MOGER; NSC 
FOR PASCUAL; JOINT STAFF FOR LTGEN SELVA 
 
E.O. 12958: DECL: 04/01/2014 
TAGS:            
SUBJECT: MOVEMENT AND ACCESS EASIER IN WESTERN NABLUS, 
STILL TROUBLESOME EAST AND SOUTH 
 
REF: JERUSALEM 479 
 
Classified By: Consul General Jake Walles for reasons 1.4 (b) and (d) 
 
 1. (SBU) Summary:  During a visit to Nablus on April 1, 
ConGenOffs observed an improvement in movement and access on 
the west side of Nablus.  The former checkpoint at Beit Iba 
has been completely dismantled, and permits still are not 
required at its replacement checkpoint two kilometers to the 
west.  The IDF also removed a roadgate and a dirtmound west 
of downtown Nablus, reconnecting western villages to the city 
center.  The head of PA Civil Affairs in Nablus acknowledged 
this improvement, but noted that checkpoints to the south and 
east of the city remain onerous, especially the one at 
Huwarra.  End Summary. 
 
Nablus Reconnected With Western Villages 
---------------------------------------- 
 
 2. (U) ConGen EconOffs and USCS officers visited Nablus on 
April 1 to review movement and access around the city.  Site 
visits confirm that the former Beit Iba checkpoint has been 
completely dismantled and that permits still are not required 
at its replacement checkpoint two kilometers to the west 
(reftel). 
 
 3. (SBU) Site visits also confirmed that the IDF removed a 
dirtmound that previously blocked traffic in and out of Sarra 
village (southwest of Nablus), as well as a roadgate near Al 
Juneid village along the Old Qalqilya road.  The two openings 
allow the surrounding villages of Qusin, Sarra, Al Juneid, 
and Bet Wazan access to An Najah University and downtown 
Nablus.   The openings also allow the free flow of traffic 
along one of the main east-west routes inside Nablus. 
However, the IDF also installed a new road barrier between 
Sarra village and nearby Jit junction, preventing access onto 
Route 60.  (Photos and descriptions of these changes are 
available on ConGen Jerusalem's unclassified intelink site - 
http://www.intelink.gov/communities/state/pal econ) 
 
Recent GOI Decisions Reflect Shifting Policy 
Toward Restrictions Around Nablus 
-------------------------------------------- 
 
 4. (C) Luay al-Assadi, head of PA Civil Affairs in Nablus, 
said that there has been a palpable shift in Israeli policy 
toward movement and access around Nablus and that he expects 
more (unspecified) changes in the future.  This relaxation 
goes beyond checkpoints, he said.  For example, he noted that 
the GOI allowed more than 6,000 farmers in the Nablus 
governorate to harvest their olives in 2008 for the first 
time in several years, and that several Nablus farmers were 
permitted to plow land that had been previously off limits to 
them.  Al-Assadi said his Israeli counterparts attribute the 
policy change to security cooperation, intelligence 
exchanges, and the PA's ability to implement rule of law. 
 
Huwarra, Sarra, and Hamra: Priority Removals 
-------------------------------------------- 
 
 5. (C) Al-Assadi said further steps are needed to improve 
movement and access around nablus.  He ranked Huwarra (the 
main checkpoint south of Nablus, which still requires 
permits) at the top of the PA's list of checkpoints around 
Nablus to be removed, followed by the newly closed gate near 
Sarra village, and the Hamra checkpoint connecting Nablus 
with the Jordan Valley.  According to al-Assadi, Israeli 
authorities recently offered to expand Huwarra checkpoint 
from one to five lanes, but the Nablus Governor rejected the 
offer.  Al-Assadi said there is an ongoing debate among 
Palestinians about whether to expand Huwarra. 
 
 6. (C) According to Palestinian business contacts, conditions 
at Hamra checkpoint have become particularly troublesome for 
Palestinians.  They claim the IDF soldiers manning Hamra are 
especially difficult and the closure of the checkpoint at 
night - when fresh produce can be transported without 
diminishing its quality - severely harms Palestinian farmers. 
 Members of the Nablus Chamber of Commerce reported that more 
than 70 traders and 3000 laborers connected with the fruit 
and vegetable sector in Nablus have become unemployed since 
 2000. 
 
 7. (C) Comment:  During a meeting with Nablus businessmen on 
April 1, EconOffs noticed a perceptible decrease in anger on 
the checkpoints issues.  Discussion of checkpoints was not as 
 
JERUSALEM 00000614  002 OF 002 
 
 
extensive as in the recent past. 
 
 8.  (C) Bio Note:  Luay al-Assadi, probably in his early 40s, 
has been in his position for a year.  He appears focused on 
his job and has an inviting, easy-going personality. 
Al-Assadi says he has built strong relations of trust with 
his Israeli counterparts.  Al-Assadi has applied unusual 
techniques to build that trust.  For example, Al-Assadi says 
he persuades his GOI counterparts to drive with him around 
Nablus to view checkpoints and discuss various issues; often 
the next day, he says he sees IDF units taking the same tour. 
WALLES