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Beitar, Beitar Illit, Bethlehem (300)

Place: Beitar Illit Bethlehem (300)
Observers: Clair Oren, Translation: Naomi Gal
Jul-17-2015
| Morning

 

 

 

 

Bethlehem Checkpoint

 

09:30 to 10:30

Ramadan is over and you can again reach the checkpoint by car. There was a fence at the entrance to the parking lot but it was easy to remove.

Surprisingly (for me) the whole checkpoint area is completely deserted. Almost no Palestinians are trying to pass to Jerusalem; perhaps the thought of spending a few hours during the festival that ends the month of Ramadan standing at the checkpoint is not a pleasant one and therefore there are very few people.

The few who did come probably had other purposes; not praying in Al-Aqsa. From a short tour of the Damascus Gate area we saw that most of the shops were closed and there was no sign of the usual hectic traffic on Fridays.

The decreasing stream of people passing at the checkpoint did not make ​​the passage easier. A woman who wanted to pass to the hospital to visit her son passed but her daughter-in-law was refused because she arrived without a permit. The man had been hospitalized for a long time and the women thought that during the holiday the policy of easing the passage would be like throughout the month of Ramadan but the holiday doesn’t count when it comes to procedures, and the daughter-in-law did not pass despite attempts to contact and help.

 

  • Beitar Illit

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    • Beitar Illit Checkpoint The checkpoint is located on road 375 (almost) on the Green Line, between Husan and Mevo Beitar and Tzur Hadassah. It serves people with Israeli identity cards travelling from Jerusalem to the Zur Hadassah area. Palestinian passage is prohibited, except for those who have an entry permit on their way back from Israel to Bethlehem. Staffed by the military and active 24 hours a day.  

  • Bethlehem (300)

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    • Located adjacent to the Separation Wall ("Jerusalem Wrap") at the north entrance to Bethlehem, this checkpoint cuts off Bethlehem and the entire West Bank from East Jerusalem, with all the serious implications for health services, trade, education, work and the fabric of life. The checkpoint is manned by the Border police and private security companies. It is an extensive infrastructure barrier and is designated as a border terminal, open 24 hours a day for foreign tourists. Israeli passport holders are not allowed to pass to Bethlehem, and Palestinian residents are not allowed to enter Jerusalem, except those with entry permits to Israel and East Jerusalem residents. Israeli buses are allowed to travel to Bethlehem only through this checkpoint.
      The checkpoint, which demonstrated harsh conditions of crowding and extreme passage delays for years, started employing advanced electronic identification posts and has upgraded its gates' system as of the middle of 2019  - and conditions improved.
      Adjacent to the checkpoint, in an enclosure between high walls and another passage, is the historic Rachel's Tomb, which is now embedded within a concrete fortified building. It contains prayer and study complexes for Jews only, as well as a residential complex. updated  November 2019   .
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