Qalandiya
The First Friday of the Ramadan Month
Qalandiya
Since 83,000 permits (to enter Jerusalem) for prayer have been revoked, only the ‘end’ ages are now allowed to cross the checkpoint into Jerusalem: men over 45 years of age, and children under 12. The child and the gray-haired man on whose shoulders he sits answer the criteria.
Fewer Palestinians than ever have arrived at the checkpoint, facing more ‘security’ forces than ever.
A few hundred men tried to present their revoked permits as valid, but were already rejected and waved back at the first inspection point.
Red Crescent volunteers were absent for the very first time, and no one was there to support the elderly and push the disabled in their wheelchairs. New, fenced-in posts for the soldiers have been installed at the entrances to the sterile compound, and the soldiers inhabiting them looked like roosters in a coop. No human touching humans – only humans touching documents.
An ambulance driver told us about two 14-year old boys, beaten by soldiers with clubs, whom he had driven to hospital in Ramallah: “One has an open leg fracture. We call it HBS (‘hit by soldier’)”, he said.
And something about feelings on this day, the picture speaks for itself:
Qalandiya Checkpoint / Atarot Pass (Jerusalem)
See all reports for this place-
Click here to watch a video from Qalandiya checkpoint up to mid 2019 Three kilometers south of Ramallah, in the heart of Palestinian population. Integrates into "Jerusalem Envelope" as part of Wall that separates between northern suburbs that were annexed to Jerusalem in 1967: Kafr Aqab, Semiramis and Qalandiya, and the villages of Ar-Ram and Bir Nabala, also north of Jerusalem, and the city itself. Some residents of Kafr Aqab, Semiramis and Qalandiya have Jerusalem ID cards. A terminal operated by Israel Police has functioned since early 2006. As of August 2006, northbound pedestrians are not checked. Southbound Palestinians must carry Jerusalem IDs; holders of Palestinian Authority IDs cannot pass without special permits. Vehicular traffic from Ramallah to other West Bank areas runs to the north of Qalandiya. In February 2019, the new facility of the checkpoint was inaugurated aiming to make it like a "border crossing". The bars and barbed wire fences were replaced with walls of perforated metal panels. The check is now performed at multiple stations for face recognition and the transfer of an e-card. The rate of passage has improved and its density has generally decreased, but lack of manpower and malfunctions cause periods of stress. The development and paving of the roads has not yet been completed, the traffic of cars and pedestrians is dangerous, and t the entire vicinity of the checkpoint is filthy. In 2020 a huge pedestrian bridge was built over the vehicle crossing with severe mobility restrictions (steep stairs, long and winding route). The pedestrian access from public transport to the checkpoint from the north (Ramallah direction) is unclear, and there have been cases of people, especially people with disabilities, who accidentally reached the vehicle crossing and were shot by the soldiers at the checkpoint. In the summer of 2021, work began on a new, sunken entrance road from Qalandiya that will lead directly to Road 443 towards Jerusalem and Tel Aviv. At the same time, the runways of the old Atarot airport were demolished and infrastructure was prepared for a large bus terminal. (updated October 2021)
Tamar FleishmanFeb-27-2026Qalandiya: On the way to prayer
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