As Ramadan began with the sighting of the new moon in Saudi Arabia and Egypt — as they said on the excited streets of Ramallah last night — the Palestinian Authority changed to winter time, turning the clocks back one hour, while Israel remains on summer time for a while longer.
This can get confusing.
The IDF checkpoints in the West Bank, of course, operate on Israeli time.
Meanwhile, the IDF announced that “soldiers arrested 5 wanted Palestinians for suspicious terror activity overnight in Judea and Samaria” [that is, in the West Bank].
Earlier, on Tuesday, the IDF spokespersons unit sent around this announcement:
“The IDF and Civil Administration are making the following accommodations in anticipation of the upcoming Ramadan period which begins on August 11th, 2010, and is followed by the Muslim holiday of Eid ul-Fitr:
A. Extending the operational hours of the Jalama and Rehan Crossings to Jenin, the Beit Mishpat Crossing [is this Qalandia?] to Ramallah, and the Rachel Crossing to Bethlehem until 24:00 daily.
B. Palestinian families who have relatives in Israel may visit them for a one-week period during the month of Ramadan.
C. Israeli-Arabs may enter A areas in Judea and Samaria from the Jordan Valley via the relevant crossings in the area.
D. The Kh. Gabra and 104 crossings to Tul Karem are open throughout the entire week.
E. 200 licenses were given to visitors from Arab countries to enter the Judea and Samaria Region for humanitarian cases.
F. Palestinian men over the age of 50 and women over the age of 45 will be able to freely enter the Temple Mount for prayer.
G. In accordance with security measures, married men between the ages of 45-50 and married women between the ages of 30-45 may also enter the Temple Mount during the Ramadan Period and Eid ul-Fitr holiday …
Moreover, Civil Administration representatives briefed all forces operating in the area regarding the holiday times and traditions and distributed educational pamphlets. IDF soldiers have been ordered to show special consideration for the residents of the Judea and Samaria Region [i.e., the West Bank] and, wherever possible to refrain from eating, drinking and smoking in public, especially at the various crossings so as to demonstrate a high level of respect and understanding“.