Bethlehem (300)
The first Friday of the Ramadan
The number of people passing on their way to prayer was much smaller than in the past. From 04:00 to 10: 30 mere 4,500 people passed. On the first Friday in Ramadan there are always fewer worshipers than later in the month, but this time the decrease in worshipers was obvious. The closure and cancellation of permits for prayers has taken its toll. The expense of travelling fare from Hebron area, only to discover that there is no way to get to prayers most certainly prevented many from arriving. The number of women who ventured out for prayers compared to the number of men was very prominent. Nothing looked like the holiday spirit we saw in “good” years, not many people smiled at us, and our greetings were ignored more than once.
The insistence on the “right” to pass was very strict. We saw many people who were forced to turn back, a difficult and sad sight.
The passage for women is quite steep and is rough on many of them. Today was not particularly hot, but if the weather will change it seems that many women would have difficulty walking. Although there is a low railing that one can sit on, the filth around it doesn’t invite one to sit and relax.
The buses left one after another, quickly. The bus company reduced the number of vehicles depending on the number of people passing. The waiting time for family members who passed through a different route was this year shorter than in previous years, probably because of the declining number of worshipers.
There were many soldiers in the area, men and women, many of them were bored. Nobody was drinking, eating or smoking in front of the fasting people. We didn’t hear any raising of voices or disrespectful tons. There was palpable tension – certainly in light of the recent events.
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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