Qalandiya
Translator: Charles K.
At 09:00 the line was very crowded, stretching all the way to the benches. The humanitarian gate was closed. We saw no soldiers or officers in the area. People on line said they’d already waited an hour. We telephoned the DCO asking to open the humanitarian gate for the women and very old men. Here’s what they replied: “Everyone’s old; they’re able to stand.” Meanwhile the line moved forward slowly and newcomers joined. The lines inside were also delayed.
At 09:20 a very senior officer, covered in brass, accompanied by a large group of young civilians, showed up at the plaza inside the checkpoint near the closed gate. We asked him why the checkpoint was so crowded, and why it took so long to go through. He said, impatiently, that he’ll explain later, because he’s busy with the visitors. He ordered us to move away from the fence and not interrupt his talk to the youths. From talking to one of the people in the group we learned that the tour had been organized by “Blue & White Human Rights,” which is connected to the Likud. The organization was founded by Yoaz Hendel, a former advisor to Netanyahu and currently the head of the Institute for Zionist Strategy. Some participants asked us not to photograph them. A woman who appeared to be the tour’s organizers, and another man, tried to prevent them from speaking with us. We should note that the humanitarian miss exercised her civil right to wear a revealing tank top, evidence that she was aware of the cultural sensitivities of those being squeezed together at the crossings.
We noticed a civilian guard and asked him to get the humanitarian gate opened. He said that only the soldiers have a key; only they can open it.
By 09:40 both the flow of people and the congestion had increased. The officer was busy speaking to the group and didn’t have time to deal with problems. We telephoned the DCO again asking to open the humanitarian gate for a woman with a baby carriage who wasn’t able to go through the regular gate. A soldier arrived a few minutes later, opened the gate, allowed the young woman to go through and immediately closed it.
Beginning at 09:50 people began crossing more quickly and more people went in. A man with a permit to go to the hospital for treatment requested our help.
By 10:20 there was almost no more line.
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 FleishmanApr-12-2026Qalandiya. Abdallah at his fruit stand
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