Qalandiya
All five checking stations were open when we arrived at 5:30 a.m. and the lines reached only half way up the path to the road. But we quickly observed that the progress forward was v e r y s l o w, really especially slow, so slow that we began to time with a stopwatch app how long it took to deal with four people allowed into the checking station each time the turnstile was opened in those stations we were able to see from our position at the Humanitarian Gate. The results varied between 1 minute and 16 seconds – which would be wonderful if it were representative – and 4 minutes and 29 seconds at another station and, immediately afterward, 3 minutes and 55 seconds at that same station — suggesting that the pace there was not the result of an isolated problem that occurred just when we began timing the station but was characteristic of it this morning.
And this just two days after the soldiers in the checking stations worked very efficiently (see report of Qalandiya, 4.2.18) and were so pleased with themselves – and rightly so! On the other hand, inconsistency is characteristic of Qalandia – and perhaps all the checkpoints. No one can ever plan when to arrive in order to reach work or school or the hospital, etc., on time, since no day resembles the one before it or the one that will follow.
Therefore, it’s no wonder that the lines collapsed – actually relatively late in the shift, at 6:45 – the crowd rushed the entrances to the “cages,” and the usual mess (pushing, shouting, whistling climbing) continued for about 40 minutes. (The begele seller told us that the same had happened the previous morning.)
The only point of light was that the Humanitarian Gate was opened at 6:04, by a security guard – the DCO soldier turned up soon thereafter – and operated smoothly throughout the shift, despite the “event” taking place a few meters away at the entrance to the cages.
At 7:45, after the lines through the cages had reformed, we joined one of them and were through the security check 35 minutes later.
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 FleishmanFeb-16-2026Qalandiya CP: shortcut
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