Eyal Crossing, Irtah (Sha’ar Efrayim), Wed 19.8.09, Morning
Translator: Louise L.
3.45 Irtah
In spite of the darkness we are able to see the women gathering in a separate group from the men close to the opening which leads to the fenced off area through which they have to pass to reach the security position. We also notice that there are not very many people on the path to the opening but more and more people keep arriving. At 4.15 it is already quite crowded. At 4.20 the checking has not started yet, so we walk to the exit. The security guard in the parking lot says that he cannot talk to us, but he will find out why people are not being let through. He returns telling us that the guards are at a briefing which will be over in five minutes.
4.25 A woman's voice is heard from the loudspeakers 'Guards get to your positions'.
4.35 They begin letting people in.
4.36 The first people reach the parking area.
A man from the Jinin area asks us to turn to the authorities. He wonders if they would let him through at Barta.
We return to the spot where we have a view of the entrance. Some men are asked to take their shoes off, but we do not see any people holding on to their belts when they come out. People tell us that 3-4 security positions are working.
5.05 At security position no. 14 the guard reminds us of the important task the checkpoint fulfills – discipline and control for the sake of control. In a firm almost aggressive voice he tells the people who are waiting: "I don't want to see anybody here in the middle. I demand order. Move backwards. Do you want to get in today? Well, stop standing like that then."
Some women tell us that they work at picking tomatoes in Ra'anana; some men are waiting in a car to go to Ramat-HaSharon to work in construction.
One man asks us to turn to the authorities with a request to build covers at the entrance to the checkpoint.
All in all people are passing quickly and the compound where they are waiting for the drivers/employers is getting overcrowded. Some people are waiting outside the fenced off area. And soon somebody will be selling food on the side of the road. A table has been set up with a water container on it (for coffee?) and on the wall there are bright posters advertising deliveries of kosher pizza supervised by the rabbi in Shavei Shomron.
We ask the people what kind of food they are allowed to bring. Honey is forbidden, and so is ice, cooked food that the guards do not know is also forbidden. They are allowed to bring a small bottle of olive oil.
6.00 We leave.
6.20 Eyal
Here also many people are waiting for the drivers/employers outside the terminal. Some people carry their work tools with them.
When we ask questions a man tells us that he arrived at the checkpoint from Mazun-Atma at 4.45 and was let through at 5.00. He says that many people arrive very early, since sometimes the checking procedure is very slow. Today it was fast, and that is why there are so many people around. Knowing that today he has no choice but to pass at Eyal the man also tells us about how the passage from his village was closed, and how before that he would reach Petah Tikva in 15 minutes. He has been working in Israel for 25 years, from the age of 13, and since 1991 he has had to bring a permit.
6.30 We leave.
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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