Barta’a-Reihan
Tura – Shaked Checkpoint, 07:20 – 07:45
There is no one waiting on the side of the Palestinian village of Tura. A few people are crossing and those who arrive cross the checkpoint quickly in both directions. Everyone who arrives is unusually pleasant to us. We don’t know why so few people are crossing today. After exchanging greetings with one man, he sums things up by saying that things are “trashy.” He explains that electricity has been cut off in the nearby village. He continued on his way and we didn’t manage to learn the entire story.
Reihan – Barta’a Checkpoint 07:55 – 08:25
Things here are very busy as usual. Once again one wing of the door to the terminal is closed, preventing us from seeing what is going on inside. It looks like at least two windows are operating. Here, too, people are extremely pleasant to us. Several people ask us for help regarding permits. The difficulty persists with no reason or explanation.
Barta’a-Reihan Checkpoint
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This checkpoint is located on the Separation Fence route, east of the Palestinian town of East Barta’a. The latter is the largest Palestinian community inside the seam-line zone (Barta’a Enclave) in the northern West Bank. Western Barta’a, inside Israel, is adjacent to it. The Checkpoint is open all week from 5 a.m. to 9 p.m. Since mid-May 2007, the checkpoint has been managed by a civilian security company subordinate to the Ministry of Defense. People permitted to cross through this checkpoint into and from the West Bank are residents of Palestinian communities inside the Barta’a Enclave as well as West Bank Palestinian residents holding transit permit. Jewish settlers from Hermesh and Mevo Dotan cross here without inspection. A large, modern terminal is active here with 8 windows for document inspection and biometric tests (eyes and fingerprints). Usually only one or two of the 8 windows are in operation. Goods, up to medium commercial size, may pass here from the West Bank into the Barta’a Enclave. A permanent registered group of drives who have been approved by the may pass with farm produce. When the administration of the checkpoint was turned over to a civilian security firm, the Ya’abad-Mevo Dotan Junction became a permanent checkpoint. . It is manned by soldiers who sit in the watchtower and come down at random to inspect vehicles and passengers (February 2020).
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