Qalandiya
We arrived at Qalandiya towards 05:10. We parked on the Israeli side and went over to the Palestinian side on foot. On the Israeli side there were already many people waiting for transportation. It was not yet dawn. On the Palestinian side it was almost empty. Five checking posts were open. We greeted the Beigel vendor and entered the empty shed. The queues were short and when the turnstiles at the end of the enclosures were opened, most of the people waiting – sometimes even all of them – passed through. At the beginning there was only one queue or two. Then there were 3 queues at all the enclosures, but no pressure ensued and the queues did not spill over beyond the shed. Among the people passing there was also our friend H., who greeted us.
Around six o’clock the NCO woman from the DCO arrived and brought with her a few soldiers, probably trainees. One of them was armed with a camera and photographed the events continuously. Others photographed from time to time with their cellular phones. The NCO explained to them what was going on but did not open the humanitarian gate as there was no need: the regular queues were short and the passage was relatively quick.
When dawn came we went outside and approached the square in order to show Micky what was going on at the vehicle checkpoint.
On our way back we stopped at the kiosk, had a conversation with Iman and his friends and bought a glass of tea. Inside the situation was still acceptable enough. Later a policewoman and a policemen arrived and the DCO soldiers left. Apparently “everything OK”, the occupation routine. It was even relatively clean. Micky’s shock at the sight of the fences and enclosures reminded me how I have gotten used to the sight which are so difficult even on a day on which the passage is relatively quick.
At 06:30 we joined one of the queues and within about a quarter of an hour we came out at the Israeli side.
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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