Qalandiya
Grim and Long Morning
Only three checking stations were open when we arrived at 5:30 a.m. — and the strategic light by the entrance to the shed had still not been replaced by a working one. Lines were long; progress was slow; and it was clear that no good would come of this situation. Checking stations 4 and 5 did not open until 6:00.
A Civil Administration officer arrived at 6:15 and immediately opened the Humanitarian Gate, which functioned more or less properly throughout the morning although Policeman M. arrived soon thereafter and appropriated her job of checking the permits of people going through the gate. (It’s a shame she did not leave and go back to sleep, as her presence there was redundant.)
Even after the two closed checking stations opened, progress forward remained slow. The lines going through the three “cages” reached all the way out to the road at the end of the parking lot – about 150 meters. Therefore, not surprisingly, at 6:40 the lines collapsed and the younger people rushed for the entrances to the cages, leaving a mob scene that lasted close to an hour.
As the few benches that remain were taken by men, young and old, who decided to wait out the mess and not risk injury, the older women without permits, who are refused access until 8:00 a.m., were left standing for much of the morning. But at 8:00, when they were to be allowed through the Humanitarian Gate, Policeman M. , for reasons we could not divine – other than his oft-displayed propensity for bullying and sadism – refused to allow a bevy of these older women through the gate and insisted they stand on the rough lines going through the cages. Infuriating!
At 7:25, when lines vaguely began to form again, we joined one that reached the back of the shed at the time. Because there was still a modicum of mess at the entrances to the cages, it took us an hour to reach and traverse the security check – which, I believe, is a record for us on a Tuesday. We needn’t elaborate on the cascade of complaints we received during the morning about the functioning of the checkpoint.
Qalandiya Checkpoint / Atarot Pass (Jerusalem)
See all reports for this place-
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 FleishmanFeb-27-2026Qalandiya: On the way to prayer
-