Bethlehem (300)
I arrived at the checkpoint at 7.15. Unlike Thursday the road was clear. Many students went through to Bethlehem, mainly young women it seemed to me.. One man told me I should come earlier and that there were many people on the Palestinian side but those coming through came through did so quietly with no signs of the anger and tension of last week. I was told that the humanitarian gate was not open. No one complained to me.
Three security guards sat very comfortably on their chairs drinking their coffee. But each one with a cigarette.
After 8.00 many Christians came through on their way to celebrate the holiday of Mary of the Greek Orthodox church. Only two windows were open but the progress was reasonable.
I left at 9.10 and took a taxi as there is no bus except that for the workers which each time filled up quickly. At the circle my Gett taxi driver was stopped by three policeman. Why three policeman are needed there at such a time I do not know. First they said that they needed to check his motor and wheels and then he showed them that the car was new. So then they claimed that I did not have the belt on which I did and then they started peeling some extra lining off his windows saying it was illegal. They gave him a report and to me it looked like sheer harassment and had he not been a Jewish Israeli I would have been certain of it. An unpleasant ending to a quiet 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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