Bethlehem (300), Etzion DCL, Sun 8.1.12, Afternoon
Etzion DCL, 15:30: not a soul waiting in the hall and the soldier at the window makes believe he doesn’t hear us. Thus we have no information as to if it was like this all day. As we turn to leave a heavily built guy comes in and obviously does not have a clue as to how to proceed. The soldier at the window does not pay attention to him and tells him to sit and wait. Why? Is the office inside full? A peek from the outer turnstile rules this out. What's more, all the guy wants is to hand in the form requesting his removal from the GSS blacklist. It turns out he (the big guy) has been blacklisted for the past 12 years but even so he is a contractor building in Israel, employing 42 workers…
We made a trip to the intercom to talk to the soldier in the office who replaced the indifferent soldier. The one we talked to lets the big guy into the office immediately.
Bethlehem – Checkpoint 300:
The passage per person takes about 1 minute.
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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Etzion DCO
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serves residents of Bethlehem and surrounding villages who need magnetic cards, work permits for Israel, permits for one-time entry for religious or health reasons, various police permits, etc.
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