Qalandiya, Mon 13.5.13, Afternoon
When we reached Qalandiya at 4 PM we saw an Israeli ambulance waiting on the Jerusalem side of the CP. Natanya went to see what was happening and discovered that the two personnel were waiting to drive some people from Gaza to Ichilov Hospital in Tel Aviv. While Natanya was talking to the driver (who spoke only Hebrew and no Arabic), they were approached by a middle-aged woman accompanied by a small girl. The woman told Natanya in Arabic that she and her granddaughter were waiting to be taken to Ichilov, which solved the question of how to connect the ambulance and the passengers. The little girl, who has a problem with the veins in her feet, was very frightened – especially of doctors – and the ambulance team bent over backwards to be nice and friendly. We went on our way, but kept an eye on the ambulance which stayed at the CP for another half an hour. It turned out that they were arranging a permit for the grandmother and her little girl so that they would be able to return to Gaza directly from Tel Aviv, without detouring via Jerusalem. Then they left.
As for the CP, it was quiet with very few people present. It was also terribly dirty and repulsive. The usual. Nothing to report.
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-27-2026Qalandiya: On the way to prayer
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