Eyal Crossing, Irtah (Sha’ar Efrayim), Fri 11.10.13, Morning
Irtah
05.00 The gate opens.
05.07 On our way to the separation fence we already see the first of the passersby. At the passage to the fence is an army vehicle with the doors open so that the road is blocked. 4 soldiers get out of the car as we approach and refuse to let us pass. Forbidden! Security orders! While Michal and Liora try to explain to them that we are there every week and that nothing has happened to us, Annelien and after her, I find a break and slide through to the fence. The other two join us. And the soldiers behind us. Forbidden. Don’t you understand that we are protecting you? An argument ensues which develops into the usual argument amongst the deaf about our right to the whole of Israel, first of all between the soldiers and myself and then with Liora. They phone for backup and in the meantime the others go to the fence to see what is happening there. As always a large group is crowding, amongst them many women and all watch the spectacle with great enjoyment. We manage to ask again why the woman’s gate is not opened on Fridays. And people push into the queue which is crowded and suffocating near to the gates.
The time has come that we do something over the head of the civil administration about the Irtah terminal. To save money the gate is only opened at 05.00 and the woman’s gate is not opened at all which causes harm to the quality of life which is left for those Palestinians who have to pass through this checkpoint.
05.18 We choose some men in the line who are already in the terminal so as to check the time of their exit and while we are preparing to turn toward the turnstile at the entrance to Israel – another army vehicle arrives and an army personage descends in full regalia. As we were already on our way out he only managed to throw a few words at us.
5.20 At the side of the entrance to Israel. The exit is swift and quick. As we count 60 people exit in one minute. Annelien counts 6 turnstiles which are open and the people coming out do not complain.
05.30 The stream of people decreases. Michal counts only 3 turnstiles which are now open. Those coming out are somber and cursing. A shout arises from inside. They tell us that the windows were closed and people sent to other lines. The crowding inside is very bad. People are left in the checking rooms, 15 people to a room, for long moments (the man who spoke to us said for 20 minutes), not knowing when they would be freed. They say that this time the crossing took nearly an hour. Can it be so?
Eyal crossing.
The checkpoint is nearly empty. A man we meet say that there is no queue. Everything is calm. A new area of the terminal has been opened which had been in the process of being built before. Annelien goes to the turnstiles which open in both directions. We enter, go through the posts where IDs are returned and the doors of the checking rooms. Then we hear an authoritative shout from one of the posts asking to know what we were doing there. A guard appears on the bridge above and explains to us that we have no right to enter the terminal. We thanked him and left. The Eyal checkpoint was empty when we arrived while Irtah was crowded and boiling. What are the reasons?
6.45 We left.
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Eyal Checkpoint / Crossing
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Eyal Checkpoint is intended for pedestrians and Palestinians only. This is the main barrier for workers to cross from the center of the West Bank. Workers with a work permit to enter Israel can pass through it for trade, medicine, and visiting prisoners. The checkpoint was built on the Green Line north of Qalqilya in the separation barrier that surrounds the city. The checkpoint began operating in 2004 by the military. Opening hours on weekdays from 04:00 to 19:00. We started holding shifts there in 2007. We arrived at the checkpoint before it opened at 4 in the morning. We reported on the difficult conditions and the long and cramped queues of workers who must continue their journey by commuting to work throughout Israel. At the end of June 2009, the checkpoint was operated by a civil security company, The transit time has been gradually shortened, today it is faster, but the Palestinians still have to arrive very early to make it to the transportation. Usually, about 15,000 people pass through.
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Irtah (Sha'ar Efrayim)
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The checkpoint is for Palestinians only. It is the main barrier to the passage of workers from the northern West Bank to Israel. Workers with a permit to work in Israel and also for trade (with appropriate permissions), medicine, and visiting prisoners. One can cross the checkpoint only on foot. The checkpoint is located north of Road 557 and south of Tulkarm. Operated by a civil security company, opening hours: between 4:00 and 19:00 on weekdays. As members of Machsom Watch, we began our shifts to this location in 2007. We arrived before it opened at 4 in the morning and report since, on the harsh conditions and the long and crowded queues of workers. The workers who pass by continue their journey by transportation to work throughout Israel. In the first period of its activity, about 3,000 and then 5,000 people passed through this checkpoint every day. Due to the small number of checking points and arbitrary delays for long periods of time in the "rooms", workers feared losing their transportation. Hence workers leave their homes at 2:30 at night to be among the first. Today, 15,000 pass and the transition is faster. Workers are still leaving their homes very early to get past the checkpoint at 7 p.m. In an adjacent compound, there is a terminal for the transfer of goods on a commercial scale, using the back-to-back method.
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