Qalandiya - Building seems to have started!
05.15. Still dark and cold, but there are already a number of people on the Israeli side. We notice that on the Israeli side beyond the area that was recently fenced off with 4 openings marked in the wall, there is now a stone wall.
Inside the shed there are short lines and 5 checking stations are open. The kiosk has moved across to stand squeezed right against the shed wall. There is now a white metal bordered passage for pedestrians, leading from the road, through the (now unused) parking lot to the shed. The cake seller, however, is in his usual place, as is the beigel seller inside the shed.
When we arrived we noticed that someone had tripped and fallen. Friends helped him up. When we went out later we saw the cause. As the passage was formed through the old parking lot there are still the old strips that marked off the rows of the parking lot. These are hard to notice in the dark.
A television team arrived – a reporter and photographer. They photographed the lines, with the reporter making her live report. She was surprised to hear from us that this was ‘a good day!’ i.e., the lines were relatively short and advanced relatively quickly. We learned they were from Al Jazeera.
Shortly after 6, a replacement came for the soldier in the aquarium, but still no D.C.O. officer or policeman. Meanwhile a line was forming at the Humanitarian Gate. At about 6.15 a and D.C.O officer arrived and started making preparations to open the gate, but disappeared. Then a guard arrived, the officer returned, and they began to open the gate.
We went outside – Beyond the new white metal passage, the parking lot wasstill desolate, no sign of building
At the far end, the old traffic circle is an island of debris, presumably preparatory to new building. Traffic no longer goes around the circle. Traffic coming from Qalandiya use the right lane as in the past. Those coming from al-Ram, instead of going around, drive on what was the left of the circle, on their way to the checkpoint.
On our return to the shed we found there were both a policewoman and an additional guard. As in last week, we saw the Arabic-speaking D.C.O. officer chatting with people waiting in the sleeve. He left the guard to deal with the Humanitarian Gate.
On the left side of the picture is the entrance to the cages, on the right the lines continue out of the shed. Near the edge of the picture on the right is the bagel vendor, standing with his back to the camera. On the left side of the picture you can see red bars, the remains of benches that were once there. The cartons on the front of the picture are used by people who pray
At 7.25 the lines were short and we joined one. It took us 25 minutes to pass through. While waiting in line at the checking station, we noticed that the gate was closed and the D.C.O. officer was leaving.
The machine in the checking station was out of order and the soldiers seemed to manage without it!
The woman soldier was amazed to see us. “Are you Jews? What are you doing here?” They hadn’t heard of Machsomwatch, but let us through without undue delay.
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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