Hizma, Qalandiya
At Qalandiya: how easily one loses one’s freedom
The victim, a Palestinian employed at the Atarot industrial zone returned from his work and discovered that his car was blocked.
The man stood there helpless, asking passers-by, drivers, vendors – whether anyone saw or knew who had done this to him. No one saw, no one knew. He came and went, roamed the entire car park- and nothing.
His wondering was interrupted by the security forces (“the security forces”) who came out of the checkpoint compound.
“You are a car thief”, they said.
The man who only wanted to get back home safely – did not get back home safely.
He said he was no thief, he said his car was blocked, he gave them his car keys and its code.
But they are the security forces and they know better.
They said “You are a car thief” and took him away.
“Just like that, for nothing they arrested him”, people said.
“No, it’s not for nothing”, said someone who knows a thing or two. “”The Israeli government never arrests anyone for nothing”.
How to keep your socks clean when you walk shoeless on the filthy checkpoint floor I learned from two women who took off their boots and wrapped their feet in nylon bags.
At Hizma:
Why do they enter the village every night, why do they invade homes even at 2 a.m., why do they arrest youngsters and children, little children, even 10-year olds? A villager asked the soldiers.
- Because they throw stones at us.
- They throw stones at you because you enter the village.
- But they throw stones.
- Because you enter the village…
When armed men arrest children it’s not a “who did it first” story.
It’s not the chicken and the egg.
It’s the story of a rotten egg.
It’s rotten.
It’s terror against civilians.
Hizma villagers used to count the time that went by since the village came under siege in days, then in weeks. Not they no longer count. Just ask: “What kind of life is this?”
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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