Hizma, Qalandiya
Closure is no divine edict. Closure is edict by the regime.
One should, one must expose the warped and false and racist character of the decision to impose closure upon millions of humans because of the Jewish holidays.
So here we go:
In generic terms the Coordinator of the Government’s Actions in the (Occupied) Territories announced that “during closure, passage will be permitted only in medical and exceptional humanitarian cases, pending confirmation by said COGAT”.
As usual COGAT is vague and does not stick to the truth. Once again – the hollow announcement lacks specific criteria.
Looking into this on the ground and in the media one discovers that those benefiting from “exceptions” are not ill or needy Palestinians, but rather Jewish industrialists whose wealth comes from the sweat of the brow of their Palestinian workers, just like the Jewish owners of farmlands cultivated by Palestinians – who turned to the Minister of Agriculture, who in his turn turned to COGAT demanding to release them from closure terms and was favored.
Those not included in the medical humanitarian criteria, and to whom closure is applied without exception are the inhabitants of the Gaza Strip. The few – of the many seriously ill – who were had previously been allowed to leave to hospitals in the West Bank and in Jordan, and had terminated their hospitalization and needed to rest and recover at home – are now not allowed to return there, so that both children and adults remain stuck somewhere. Neither patients nor their accompaniers were seen at Qalandiya Checkpoint. They probably remain hospitalized, said one who knows.
Only after the Passover week is over, when the Jews will finish touring and barbecuing, will these Palestinians allowed to travel back home.
Military presence harasses Hizma villagers again.
Two military vehicles came to the entrance to the village, seven armed men and women disembarked, two (right-hand in the photo) walked several dozen meters from the road to some stone slabs, stopped, urinated in a public space that is not theirs, not their home – and went back.
They come every day, said an acquaintance, sometimes once or twice a day, sometimes they just stand there, and sometimes they stop cars and inspect IDs.
Hizma
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Hizma
A checkpoint at the north-eastern entrance to the Jerusalem area which was annexed in 1967, at Pisgat Zeev. The passage is allowed to bearers of blue IDs only. Open 24 hours a day.
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Qalandiya Checkpoint / Atarot Pass (Jerusalem)
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Click here to watch a video from Qalandiya checkpoint up to mid 2019 Three kilometers south of Ramallah, in the heart of Palestinian population. Integrates into "Jerusalem Envelope" as part of Wall that separates between northern suburbs that were annexed to Jerusalem in 1967: Kafr Aqab, Semiramis and Qalandiya, and the villages of Ar-Ram and Bir Nabala, also north of Jerusalem, and the city itself. Some residents of Kafr Aqab, Semiramis and Qalandiya have Jerusalem ID cards. A terminal operated by Israel Police has functioned since early 2006. As of August 2006, northbound pedestrians are not checked. Southbound Palestinians must carry Jerusalem IDs; holders of Palestinian Authority IDs cannot pass without special permits. Vehicular traffic from Ramallah to other West Bank areas runs to the north of Qalandiya. In February 2019, the new facility of the checkpoint was inaugurated aiming to make it like a "border crossing". The bars and barbed wire fences were replaced with walls of perforated metal panels. The check is now performed at multiple stations for face recognition and the transfer of an e-card. The rate of passage has improved and its density has generally decreased, but lack of manpower and malfunctions cause periods of stress. The development and paving of the roads has not yet been completed, the traffic of cars and pedestrians is dangerous, and t the entire vicinity of the checkpoint is filthy. In 2020 a huge pedestrian bridge was built over the vehicle crossing with severe mobility restrictions (steep stairs, long and winding route). The pedestrian access from public transport to the checkpoint from the north (Ramallah direction) is unclear, and there have been cases of people, especially people with disabilities, who accidentally reached the vehicle crossing and were shot by the soldiers at the checkpoint. In the summer of 2021, work began on a new, sunken entrance road from Qalandiya that will lead directly to Road 443 towards Jerusalem and Tel Aviv. At the same time, the runways of the old Atarot airport were demolished and infrastructure was prepared for a large bus terminal. (updated October 2021)
Tamar FleishmanJun-8-2025Qalandiya: Emptiness in public space
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