Bethlehem, Etzion DCL, Mon 18.7.11, Morning
7:00 am, Bethlehem – Checkpoint 300: four lanes are open, short lines, movement flows through fast. Earlier, though, some Palestinians tell us there were serious problems.
8:00 am, Etzion DCL: about 70 people are waiting. There
isn’t any officer today and there won’t be, they’re on a mission. The DCL
is opened. People are stressed out because they’re so many in number and they know what that means: they have bitter memories. Only a few are let through. Some come for the second and third time. About 15 people are returning today for a magnetic card.
At 9:30 we called from the road, but the line hadn’t advanced. We called the DCL, and the soldier said he had no time to talk to Machsomwatch and hung up.
We returned to the Etzion DCL
at 10:00 am. The space was filled to capacity. The line was crowded, stressed, bursting at the seams. People were stressed and bickering, the atmosphere threatening. A group of soldiers and officers enters the hall and tries to instill order. The most patient officer twice asks people to stop pushing, but it doesn’t help. People are complaining that since 8:00am, only 10 women have gone in. When the officer enters, more are allowed in.
The crowdedness, mess and stress aren’t necessary, and their impact is clearly detrimental. The DCL needs to reorganize: there should always be a soldier manning the DCL at all times, to allow people to go through in turn without pushing. And most importantly, they must speed up the incredibly slow work pace in the DCL office. It takes only a few minutes to make a magnetic card, so it’s totally unreasonable that only 10 women are processed in almost two hours. It’s unreasonable that people should have to come in two or three times to get a magnetic card, or that when they come on a certain day they might be turned back because it’s not Bethlehem day, which is packed. They should be allowed to arrive on another day. People lose workdays, doctor’s appointments or business meetings because of this intolerable DCL situation.
To the attention of the authorities: an improvement is needed, and fast.
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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