‘Azzun ‘Atma, Wed 15.7.09, Morning
07:00 A dense crowd is at the gate of about 70 Palestinians with permits to work in settlements. A single soldier conducts the inspection. People approach him one by one, hand him their ID card and permit. He checks and lets them through. A female soldier is busy letting two children from the isolated houses into ‘Azzun ‘Atma.
The Palestinian workers come out, complaining that they’ve been in line for about half an hour. They say that entry through the lower gate is quick today, but here it’s slow. They say it’s like that every day – sometimes entry from the West Bank to ‘Azzun ‘Atma through the lower gate is slow, and sometimes the exit from ‘Azzun ‘Atma to the seam area is slow.
07:10 The female soldier has finished letting the children in, and also comes over to carry out inspections. We chose a man wearing orange to time how long it takes to go through. A woman stands off to the side near the gate. The soldier asks why she doesn’t go through with the workers. They explain that she’s not permitted to stand with the men. The soldier relents, goes to the tent and gets a key. He lets the woman in. Finishes, returns the key to its place in the tent. Five minutes later, another woman. The soldier lets the female soldier continue inspecting the men, gets the key from the tent, opens the gate, lets the woman in and returns the key to the tent. Why doesn’t he keep it in his pocket? There must be order!
07:30 The man we timed went through – he waited in line for 20 minutes!
The workers wait for their employers on the other side of the road. Their cars arrive from Ganei Tikvah and from Oranit. Each contractor picks up his workers.
'Azzun 'Atma
See all reports for this place-
'Azzun 'Atma
A Palestinian village of about 1,800 residents. The settlement of Sha'arei Tikva was established on its land adjacent to it, and the settlement of Oranit was established on its agricultural lands. By 2013, the separation fence had passed through the village and a checkpoint staffed by the army allowed the residents to cross from side to side. After building a massive wall surrounding the village and some of its agricultural lands, the residents went daily for five years to their lands that remained in the Seam Zone through the Oranit agricultural checkpoint (4). Since 2018 it has only opened during the olive harvest and the farmers have to pass daily at the Beit Amin / Abu Salman checkpoint (1447), about 3 kilometers north.From a report from March 24, 2021: "The farmers from Beit Amin and Azon Atma are happy that since February 21 the Oranit checkpoint .is going to be open 3 times a day, The farmers are really developing the place."
Report from July 14, 2024: "Ornit checkpoint is closed . The Beit Amin/Abu Salman agricultural checkpoint is closed (there is no contact with the military to check if it opens rarely), the Ezbat Jaloud checkpoint was opened once a day before the war.
Updated for July 2024
Apr-11-2019Azoun: The main entrance to village blocked now for several weeks
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