‘Anata, Qalandiya, Thu 12.8.10, Afternoon
Sheikh Jarach, Qalandiya CP, Anata 14.30 – 18.00
We started at Sheikh Jarach; two women and a child of about 5 were sitting under the fig tree with two volunteers. A Danish girl from ISM and an American boy who is a free lance volunteer, both of them live in Nablus and move between Israel and the West Bank.
Five houses on the street have already been evacuated from their former inhabitants who all live together in one house now. On the house across the street from the fig tree, where for over a year settlers live, more and more Jewish symbols are being posted. Now a big sign on the upper cornice facing the street says: "Veshavu Banim Ligvulam". More houses in this neighborhood, up on the hill, are surrounded by chains of Israeli flags. While we sat there a group of about ten young people approached the street and the Palestinian women immediately recognized them as settlers. Luckily they turned towards the tomb of Shimon the righteous. We were told about the Friday demonstrations held on the empty lot nearby while all entrances to the street are being blocked by the police.
We proceeded to Qalandiya; Some of the streets we used before for getting there are now blocked by new building sites of shopping centers and new apartment houses. We entered through the pedestrian entrance used by those who return home from Israel. New machines for palm reading have been installed. Apparently only part of the people is supposed to use them. The waiting hall was empty; only a peddler who sells sweets and another one who has a stall with fresh white bread for the end of fasting evening meal were busy there. We started to walk back through the exit turnstiles. There were no long lines but for the first time did we hear over the loud speakers that there are separate exits for those who carry green IDs. We waited for about ten minutes before we could go through. Because of our exaggerated self esteem we did not stop to show our IDs. Loud calls, mainly directed towards our guest, calling him Haj, made us return to the window to show our identification.
We continued to Anata, where we have not been for a long while. Inside the village we could not see any changes, only more cars on the narrow street. Looking toward south a very large CP that is under construction can be seen. On the right side of it there is a big wall, coming up all the way from A-Zaeem. The hour was 5.30 in the afternoon, and we saw men and children carrying bags full with fresh breads for the festive meal.
Checkpoint Shu'afat camp / Anata-Shu'afat (Jerusalem)
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The Shu’afat checkpoint is located in the northern part of East Jerusalem at the exit from the village of Anata and the Shu’afat refugee camp, which are located in the area annexed to Jerusalem in 1967. The refugee camp borders the Shu’afat neighborhood to the west, Pisgat Ze’ev to the north, the French Hill neighborhood to the south and the planned expansion of Ma’aleh Adumim to E-1 in the east. It was established in 1966 for 1948 refugees from the West Bank and was populated after the Six Day War by persons who had been expelled from the Jewish Quarter. Today its population comprises some 25,000 people holding blue ID cards and some 15,000 people with Palestinian ID cards. The camp lacks adequate infrastructure and services, and suffers from poverty, neglect and overcrowding. All its buildings are connected to the public electricity and water infrastructure, but not all are connected to the sewer system. The camp’s services are provided by UNRWA, except for those such as health clinics and transportation of pupils to schools in Jerusalem. In 2005, the Israeli High Court of Justice rejected a suit by the residents requesting that the route of the separation fence be drawn such that the camp would remain on the Israeli side, but conditioned its approval of the route on the establishment of a convenient and rapid crossing facility for the inhabitants of the neighborhood, most of whom are residents of Jerusalem.
A temporary checkpoint operated there until December, 2011. It was extremely congested during rush hours, and dangerous for pedestrians (especially children) because of inadequate safety provisions. The new checkpoint was inaugurated south of the old one, for public and private transportation and for pedestrians, intended solely for the residents of the camp – holders of blue ID cards, and those with Palestinian ID cards who possess appropriate permits. There are five vehicle inspection stations at the checkpoint, and two for pedestrians (one of which is currently closed) where scanners have been installed but are not yet operating. According to the army, representatives of government agencies will also be present to provide services to residents of the neighbourhood. The pedestrian lanes are very long, located far from the small parking lots, and accessible through only a single revolving gate.
Anat TuegAug-12-2010Anata: new traffic circle at the exit junction
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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 FleishmanJun-8-2025Qalandiya: Emptiness in public space
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