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Qalandiya, Mon 2.2.09, Afternoon
Netanya G., Phyllis W. (reporting)
14:45 Ar Ram There were few vehicles at the checkpoint. No pedestrians and no detainees.
14:55 There was no line at Atarot and traffic flowed
15:00 When we arrived at Qalandiya, we counted a line of 8 buses that were waiting at the northern circle. Within the checkpoint, there were a lot of people — three full lines in the hut (in the northern one and also two in the two operating (2 & 4) there were about 200 people). We called the hotline and the woman soldier who answered she would check on what was happening. Just to be sure, we also called the commander of the passageways, Mahdi, but we were not surprised that he didn't answer and we left him a message. We also sent a brief SMS to his recording machine. Mahdi returned a message and saying that it was being dealt with, and even before we managed to thank him, another lane was opened and things started to move.
15:35 The lines were over — both in the hut and also in the inner passageways. We decided to visit the checkpoint at Atara and then to return to Qalandiya. Even though the traffic was heavy, we crossed without delay.
16:00 Already as we we walking up the hill, we saw that there were no lines in any direction. At the checkpoint, a soldier approached us and politely asked that we stand off to the side so as not to disrupt the traffic. He placed us exactly within the checkpoint and stayed to talk to us. It's been a long time since we got such friendly treatment. He told us about the experience of his unit in Gaza and how, as a medic, He treated wounded Palestinians. And of course, he told us about how the officers in his unit instructed the soldiers on how to relate politely to the Palestinians. And in truth, we saw no problems at the checkpoint. The soldiers did not bother and the traffic continued to flow.
1630 – 1700 We returned to the Qalandiya checkpoint. As we approached the Leel checkpoint, we were stuck in a long slow lane of some 40 cars that slowly wound up the hill. It took us a quarter of an hour to reach the checkpoint and there soldiers told us that there was stone throwing and Molotov cocktails further up. We realized that we would not be able to get to Qalandiya and continued via Hizme to Jerusalem.
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 FleishmanOct-27-2026Qalandiya. Closure – Climbing over the fence
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