Irtach, Ayal, Chabala 15 December 2010
Translation: Suzanne O.
Until the sun rose it was very cold and we wondered how the Palestinians get to the roadblock in the middle of the night – they are the builders, agricultural workers and cleaners who do all the work that Israelis either despise or are not prepared to do for the wages paid for them – they have to queue in the cold and then perform physical work.
Irtach Crossing
4:50 a.m.
Those who have already been through the inspection are scattered around in small groups at the top of the road, in the car park, in the area adjacent to the roadblock, the same space in which a few months ago the vehicles transporting the labourers to their work in Israel were permitted to park.
The iron barrier which barred the road leading to the roadblock has been removed.
Beside the entrance to the site the turnstiles are immobile. However, as we arrive they are activated and people hurry in. Each time the turnstiles open between 30 – 50 people manage to squeeze in front of the magnometer. It happens every minute (a minute which is not spared from waiting in the 'rooms') and they put articles on the table (tins of food, for example) which might set off the magnometer.
Today the anonymous voice coming through the tannoy system speaks to those entering in a quiet and moderate tone. However, when there is a short hold up in putting articles on the table it causes the voice to rise and become impatient: "Yallah go through!" And again the turnstiles are immobile. 5 minutes later they are activated again, and so on.
5:05 a.m.
A woman goes to the end of the queue. "What happened?" "Hawiya" – ID card. But she has already been through the turnstile so it is not clear what the problem was with her ID card.
It is still dark but we can see that in the lane leading to the entrance to the roadblock many people are standing crowded together. From time to time the crowd's voice sounds complaining at the extended waiting time. The voice is carried on the air but there is not a soul on the other side that appears to have actually heard the heartfelt call.
A man returns and then another one but they both refuse to reply when we ask why.
5:30 a.m.
We are at the exit point of the building. People leave all the time but at different rates. A man leaving says that there are no people inside but there are still loads of people waiting to get in.
5:40 a.m.
We left.
Ayal Crossing
6:05 a.m.
There are a lot of people and vehicles in the car park. There are buses among the vehicles waiting for the arrival of the relatives of Palestinian prisoners imprisoned in Israel. They will arrive at 7:30 a.m.
On the lane leading from Kalkilya towards the roadblock the turnstile is working and people go through one at a time. It is still dark and the movement of the shadows entering is like a slow motion film. There is no crowding on the lane and at a rough guess there are still 300 people waiting to be inspected.
We go over to the turnstile at the exit from the building and a man tells us, as he walks to the car park, "There is no harder life than this".
6:30 a.m.
We left.
We drove via Tsofin roadblock. A Border Policeman appeared confused or surprised at seeing a car bearing the MachsomWatch flag. With a hesitant hand movement he signals us to stop. "Where are you from? I'm asking because of the flag". The car starts to move and he again signals us to stop. This time he wants to inspect the boot! Later we glanced at what not so long ago was the Kalkilya roadblock. Now there is a huge advertisement over the road, where before there was the roadblock.
Eliahu Crossing
6:45 a.m.
People continue to arrive at the checkpoint for Palestinians who have succeeded in getting a work permit for the settlement Alfei Menasheh. Some 15 men and women queue there.
Chabala
7:05 a.m.
Two school buses transporting pupils from the Bedouin diaspora of Arav – a Ramadin arrive. These children go to schools in Chabala and Kalkilya. A soldier gets on the bus for an inspection.
One of the bus drivers requests that the gates open at 1.15 p.m., and not at 1:45 p.m., when the children returnafter school. The buses and the children in them get to the gate at 1:15 p.m., and are forced to wait. This waiting time is a recipe for problems and the drive expresses his concern that while waiting the children (as is their way) may cause problems.
7:37 a.m.
We left. There are still a number of people waiting to cross into their lands.
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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Habla
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Habla CP (1393)
The Habla checkpoint (1393) was established on the lands of the residents of Qalqilya, on the short road that
connected it for centuries to the nearby town of Habla. The separation barrier intersects this road twice and cut off the residents of Qalqilya from their lands in the seam zone.(between the fence and the green line).
There is a passage under Road 55 that connects Qalqilya to the sabotage This agricultural barrier is used by the farmers and nursery owners established along Road 55 from the Green Line and on both sides of the kurkar road leading to the checkpoint.
This agricultural checkpoint serves the residents of Arab a-Ramadin al-Janoubi (detached from the West Bank), who pass through it to the West Bank and back to their homes. The opening hours (3 times a day) of this agricultural checkpoint are longer than usual, about an hour (recently shortened to 45 minutes), and are coordinated with the transportation hours of a-Ramadin children studying in the occupied in the West Bank.
Nina SebaAug-18-2025Habla: The gate is in the process of closing
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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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