Ar-Ram, Qalandiya
Qalandiya:
Before the entrance to the checkpoint Rafi, the policeman, and his assistant, whose name I've forgotten, are waiting for their prey.
They are detaining men, only young men, take their ID cards and write down their personal details in order to intimidate them or to "create a feeling of being persecuted" as they call it in the army.
Or in order to add to the data-base names of potential candidates for meetings in the captain's office?
Maybe in order to implement the occupation policy demanding "to keep the population in a permanent state of uncertainty".
Or, maybe, to catch those who crossed in the morning in search of a few shekels for their families?
Or…?
"There was a big mess in the morning", says an acquaintance of mine. A young woman was detained by the soldiers early in the morning, since they suspected her of keeping a fake Israeli ID card. Somebody else explained that those are not news. Things like that happen all the time. And I don't know what happens all the time, suspicions about fake ID cards or attempts to cross with a fake ID card, or maybe, many arrests.
a-Ram, or: That's what collective punishment looks like
The main entrance to a-Ram has been blocked for at least a week. Nobody enters and nobody leaves. Against international law, collective punishment including tens of thousands of people is being implemented due to the young boys who, every evening, keep throwing stones at army vehicles driving on the main road – road 45 leading from Qalandiya to road 60 towards the Adam junction.
"We take action when they riot" says the commander of the armed and protected soldiers who are posted at the entrance to the Rama base which is located so close to the houses in a-Ram that it seems like a provocation.
The commander also says that the soldiers retaliate with tear gas since the "riots" (his words) might spread and cause harm in the Adam settlement.
Green-painted concrete barriers mark the line that cannot be crossed. Except for a lonely dog nobody dares to get near.
Stones and shells are scattered on the blocked road from a-Ram. Everybody knows who threw what on whom. Flowers won't bloom here, it seems.
A-Ram
See all reports for this place-
two kilometers south of Qalandiya and 300 metres north of Neve Yaacov Junction, in Dahiyat el-Barid Quarter. Checkpoint has operated since 1991, in a Palestinian area annexed to Jerusalem in 1967. The checkpoint has been inactive since the middle of 2009.
The wall was built on the road that led to Jerusalem. Since then the situation in the town has deteriorated. Houses are abandoned and half finished, most of the businesses have closed. Severe neglect around the fence and on the streets. Those who could left. Updated January 2024
-
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 FleishmanMay-13-2025Qalandiya: Back-to-back procedure for transferring patients
-
