Qalandiya, Ar-Ram, Sunday, 09.04.06 PMObservers: Tamar F., Netanya G. and Phyllis W.(reporting)Due to final closure of the Qalandiya CP, we had to make changes to our usual route in an attempt to develop an efficient format for our future shifts. We set out from Beit Hanina in our own car at 14:00. We passed through Ar-Ram CP but did not stop. There were only a few pedestrians but a long line of vehicles.This week one had to come from the Israeli side of the road to reach Qalandiya CP, by crossing to the western side of the barrier wall in what was once Ar-Ram’s central square. When we reached Qalandiya we found the checkpoint deserted (except for soldiers) – no people and no cars in what was once a bustling place. Passage through the CP has been closed to all those without blue ID cards. On the other hand, people may now travel directly back and forth from Ramallah to Ar-Ram without passing through a CP (for how long?). After a short stay in Qalandiya we returned via A-Ram. It presently became clear that the problems had not disappeared but just been transferred to other places. We saw lines of vehicles attempting to pass through narrow gaps in the wall (manned by Israeli soldiers) in order to travel to villages west of the wall such a Bir Naballah, etc. A truck driver on his way home after his day’s work was told that he could not pass through Dahiyyat al-Barid Square to his near-by house but had to drive through the CP at Bituniya. The soldier who told him to do so admitted that he had no idea where Bituniya was. When we passed through Ar-Ram, we saw that the line of cars was very long, with more than 30 vehicles waiting.