‘Anabta, Ar-Ras, Irtah, Jubara (Kafriat), Sun 25.11.07, Morning
Summary
We have never congestion such as this before seen at Irtah. At Ar-Ras and Anabta all the cars stop and some of them are quickly checked.
Irtah 07:00
We were quite shocked to see the huge number of vehicles and people in and out of the parking lot. We went on to the turnstile on the Tulkarm side and saw a crowd of about a hgundred people gathering at the entrance and a relatively large number of vehicles in the parking lot. When we asked about the reason for the congestion, one of the people said that Qalqiliya checkpoint had been closed and everyone had to pass through Tulkarm. A few minutes later the gate opened and some 20-30 workers were allowed to pass. We went back to the parking lot on the Israeli side. After some workers had told us they had been waiting for three hours and another had claimed that he had passed at 05:00 after waiting for an hour while his friend who had been detained for an additional inspection indoors hadn't come out yet, we asked to talk to the head of the facility.
Amitay, who is in charge of the facility, came out a few minutes later and his story was quite different. According to him, all the positions at the terminal, that had started working at 04:30 were manned. And the passage took only a short time. As for inspections indoors, there were scarcely any thanks to a new system of inspection that was in operation. He claimed those who worked with rtegular employees passed quickly within 10-15 minutes, and later came the ones who tried to grab the opportunity and get work and the congestion was due to the fact that there were more workers with working permits.
Workers known to Amitay and were asked about it in his presence confirmed that the passage was quick. Indeed we saw it was. What had happened before was not quite clear. We told Amitay that some people had claimed that closing the checkpoint in Qalqiliya and/or in Jit was the reason for the congestion. He called to get some clarification and was told that Qalqiliya checkpoint was open but only since 07:00.
Jubara 07:40
The soldiers who manned the post and were new at the checkpoint were reluctant to let us pass through the village and only after clarifying the matter at the brigade headquarters (about 10 minutes) did we pass.
Ar-Ras
The reservists at the post stopped each car and a minute later let it pass. Less than 10 vehicles were in line.
Anabta 08:20
A line of 7 cars from the south and over 10 cars from the north. Each car stopped for an inspection of less than half a minute.
We went on to Beit Iba.
'Anabta CP
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'Anabta CP
The checkpoint is located south of the village of 'Anabta, at the intersection of Road 60 (leading to Nablus at the entrance to Area A), with Road (57, 557, 5576) facing west towards the Einav settlement and the checkpoint at the exit from the West Bank - Figs checkpoint. Until 2010 we used to watch the intersection and report the long columns created due to a slow inspection of the vehicles in both directions.
Oct-28-2011Anabta checkpoint 24.10.11
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A-Ras (The Children Checkpoint)
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A-Ras (The Children Checkpoint)
On Tulkarm-Qalqiliya road (574), east of Hirbet Jubara. tia checkpoint is dedicated to residents traveling to and from Tulkarm, so they should not cross apartheid road 557 (only permissible for settlers).
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Irtah (Sha'ar Efrayim)
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The checkpoint is for Palestinians only. It is the main barrier to the passage of workers from the northern West Bank to Israel. Workers with a permit to work in Israel and also for trade (with appropriate permissions), medicine, and visiting prisoners. One can cross the checkpoint only on foot. The checkpoint is located north of Road 557 and south of Tulkarm. Operated by a civil security company, opening hours: between 4:00 and 19:00 on weekdays. As members of Machsom Watch, we began our shifts to this location in 2007. We arrived before it opened at 4 in the morning and report since, on the harsh conditions and the long and crowded queues of workers. The workers who pass by continue their journey by transportation to work throughout Israel. In the first period of its activity, about 3,000 and then 5,000 people passed through this checkpoint every day. Due to the small number of checking points and arbitrary delays for long periods of time in the "rooms", workers feared losing their transportation. Hence workers leave their homes at 2:30 at night to be among the first. Today, 15,000 pass and the transition is faster. Workers are still leaving their homes very early to get past the checkpoint at 7 p.m. In an adjacent compound, there is a terminal for the transfer of goods on a commercial scale, using the back-to-back method.
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Jubara (Kafriat)
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The Jabra checkpoint was on Road 557, south of Tulkarm, on the side of the Figs Pass, which is located within the Palestinian Authority (a few kilometers east of the Green Line), and serves as an entry barrier from the territories to Israel. The checkpoint to the village of Jubara, which until 2013 was in the seam area, blocked and surrounded by a fence, was intended for the passage of the family members of the house next to the checkpoint, and also for the MachsomWatch volunteers (with special permission only), on their way to checkpoint 753. on the other side of the village. The soldiers supervising the "fig crossing" also supervised the crossing at this checkpoint, in our shifts we often waited a long time until the key was found and the gate opened. The checkpoint was abolished and became part of the separation fence that was moved west following the High Court.
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