QALANDIYA, 24.1.2011,PM
As Phyllis is away Dalia who is not a member of Machsomwatch offered to go with me to Qalandiya. We arrived at 3.30 to find two windows open and no problems.
3.30 There were 7 people waiting to get into the DCO but after a phone call they were all let through. But a man and woman with their daughter of 17 came out very distraught and the girl was crying. It turned out that she had an interview tomorrow at the American Embassy for a visa to visit her brother in America whom she has not seen for over 10 years. She was in tears and we could not understand why they had been sent back. We phoned the Moked and Qalandiya headquarters and C(hen) said that he would do his best to help. In a few minutes they went through again and then came back saying they had been sent to the post office. I do not know by whom but as the woman said they have never been to the DCO before and asked that we should please go in with them. I think they simply did not know where to go. I phoned C. again and asked him to have them let through again…he himself was not in the vicinity…and to have the soldiers on duty allow me to go through with them. In a few minutes all 4 of us went through and I sat and waited and lo and behold within 5 minutes they were out all smiles and waving the permit for tomorrow. It is seldom that we are able to help people with so little effort and so much goodwill as there was from C.
We went through to the Israeli side. The woman soldier was surprised when she saw that I was a Jewish Israeli and wanted to know what we were doing there. She had evidently never heard of Machsomwatch and I simply said that we were a group of women who documented what was happening at the checkpoint. She was pleasant and there was a steady stream of people going through with no intervals or delays. On the Israeli side of the checkpoint we saw 2 soldiers sitting in the booth watching the cars going through to the area of Qalandiya but they were not checking or delaying and cars…at least now while we were there.
At about 4.45 there was only one window open but though there were about 10 people in line and 40 outside we timed a wait of about 20 minutes both inside and out. A surprisingly easy day….for us.
We left at 5.15 and in the dark got lost coming back but a very nice taxi driver put us on the right road to the circle.
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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 FleishmanJul-21-2026Qalandiya. Conversation in the shadow of the wall
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