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Abu Dis, Container (Wadi Nar), Ras Abu Sbitan (Olive Terminal), Mon 24.3.08, Afternoon

Place: Abu Dis / Lazarus gate (formerly The Wicket) Container (Wadi Nar) Ras Abu Sbitan (Olive Terminal)
Tags: Detainees
Observers: Chana G., Rahel W. (reporting)
Mar-24-2008
| Afternoon
It was a terribly hot day and anyone who could, stayed inside.  The Zeitun crossing was almost deserted although there were a lot of cars parked in the lot, obviously waiting for people to return to the Israeli side.  We noticed a few people waiting in the hut outside the checkpoint, but they were obviously there to get out of the sun rather than to get into the DCL area.

 
Wadi Naar 

When we arrived, we counted 10 Border Police soldiers — twice the usual number.  That did not include however many who were in the watchtower.  There were also two armored jeeps parked there.  There were 3 detained vehicles.  After about 10 minutes, all the i.d.'s that had been taken were returned and the commander told us that we had to take cover because  an army exercise was going on. 

We went into the shop and waited while the B.P ran around with their weapons ready.  Perhaps all this extra strength was because of fear of some kind of reprisal because it was the 40th day (and the end of the mourning period) since the death of Mughniyah


 
After about 5 minutes, the exercise ended, the two jeeps with some B.P.'s pulled away and things went back to normal.  The traffic moved through very quickly, perhaps because it was so miserably hot outside that the border policemen on duty understandably did not want to stand outside more than absolutely necessary

  • Abu Dis / Lazarus gate (formerly The Wicket)

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    •  

      Abu Dis / Lazarus Checkpoint/Gate (east of the former “wicket”)

      Construction of the wall in the Abu Dis area blocked all the gaps that allowed people to cross from al-Ezariya to the neighbourhoods of Abu Dis and Ras al 'Amud that are located within Jerusalem’s municipal boundary. The Lazarus checkpoint is a gate in the wall adjacent to the Lazarus Monastery. Until 2011 it had a door for pilgrims to al-Ezariya and for the monastery’s kindergarten pupils from al-Ezariya. The crossing is currently closed, but the site has infrastructure for conducting inspections.

  • Container (Wadi Nar)

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    •  Wadi Nar Checkpoint ("Container", "The Kiosk") - a barrier for vehicles in Area B that is regularly manned - east of Abu Dis between Sawahra A Sharqiya and Bethlehem and its daughters. Controls Palestinian movement between the north and south West-Bank. Includes driving routes, access roads, spikes, traffic lights and signs. There is no pedestrian crossing. Open 24 hours a day with random checks enhanced on security alerts. The checkpoint is in Palestinian territory, allowing for separation between the north and the south Palestinian areas when necessary.

      In 2015, the leading road from Azaria to Bethlehem was renovated, as well as the steep and narrow ascent to the Wadi Nar checkpoint, which was dangerously travelled in both directions! The temporary checkpoint was renovated and expanded, and pedestrian traffic was banned. From 2016, traffic travelling from the south bank to Azaria was directed to a one-way road near the Southern Keydar Jewish settlement.

      Machsomwatch shifts visit this far-fetched checkpoint only occasionally.

      (updated to July 2019)

       

  • Ras Abu Sbitan (Olive Terminal)

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    • A large checkpoint/crossing to the area of a-Tur, Abu Dis and the Old City; only for pedestrians. Located on Jerusalem’s municipal boundary.

      One of the major crossings in Jerusalem’s central sector. It is located on the separation fence between the northern portion of the al-Ezariya neighborhood and the neighborhood of a-Tur and the rest of East Jerusalem. It is manned by Border Police soldiers and private security companies and operates 24 hours a day. Palestinians are forbidden to go through, other than permanent residents of East Jerusalem (holders of blue ID cards) and holders of work and commercial permits who are allowed through only on foot.

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