Bethlehem, Fri 25.2.11, Morning
Bethlehem– Checkpoint 300: checking positions open; no line.
Outside, a young man approaches us: He and his daughter are on their way to visit the mother hospitalized in Al-Mokassad, but the child is not allowed to cross. He has no permit for the girl, but there is an original permit, and the girl is young. The officer I approach tells me that from the age of 11 a permit is required. The Palestinian says the child is 12, but the DCL does not give permits for 12-13 year olds, only older ones… a more than usually problematic age… In the end, the child crosses.
There were 2 more cases of children whose problem was not resolved because the permit was a copy.
A young man from the international volunteers arrived with a Scandinavian group on a tour of checkpoints. He insisted on understanding the matter of the permits, and said he had not yet heard of the requirement for an original one. He said that yesterday morning (Thursday) had also been very difficult: an enormous line at the "humanitarian crossing". He had called the Moked, and it had taken an hour and a half until the commander, "Ahmad" turned up. Today it took him "only" 35 minutes.
I witnessed a heart-rending case of a woman, not young, who had lost her bag with her ID and permit. She came crying/shouting that she had put it down in the checking channel and had not found it afterwards. A soldier went to check but found nothing. Someone must have taken the bag by mistake. A Palestinian went to check on the bus whether any one had taken the bag by mistake, but returned empty-handedly. The woman stood there screaming, but there was nothing to be done.
By 10:45 the place was empty again.
Bethlehem (300)
See all reports for this place-
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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