A quiet morning in Qalandiya
We arrived at Qalandiya at about 5.15 and parked as usual on the Israeli side and walked in the direction of the checkpoint so as to pass through to the Palestinian side. Today we went on Monday and not on Wednesday as usual because Tuesday the holiday of Id al-Adcha starts (the holiday of the sacrifice). Already from the outside we could see that there were few people. We met H., our friend, on the Israeli side next to the buses and he also said that there were few people today.
Inside it was completely empty. The turnstiles at the end of the sleeves were open and everyone who arrived went through. The beigel seller told us that today was a day of fasting before the holiday and many people do so. Therefore some of them do not come to work. He says on such a day he loses many customers. He told us that he worked for many years in Israel …building, in a laundry, in a restaurant…whatever. Today he is 68 but has no pension so he sells beigels at the checkpoint so as to make a living. He said that his wife is sick and had to have an operation. But they had to pay 5000 shekel that he managed to collect but he does not know how he will pay it back.
After 6.00 we went outside to checked if anything was happening. We saw nothing new this time. At 6.30 we too went through to the windows. We were slightly delayed because a man who was not used to this was in front of us and each time that Magnometer went off. The people gave him instructions….take off your belt, take everything out of your pockets, take off your shoes, etc. At last he managed to go through. The passage through took us 20 minutes and because of the holiday there was little traffic and the road to town was open.
Happy holiday.
Qalandiya Checkpoint / Atarot Pass (Jerusalem)
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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 FleishmanJul-21-2026Qalandiya. Conversation in the shadow of the wall
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