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Qalandiya, Mon 4.2.13, Afternoon
Observers: Natanya G., Pamela B. and Phyllis W. (reporting)
3:30 PM: Once again the huge gate in the Wall was open and most of the vehicles ahead of us turned in to A-Ram. We continued to the parking lot. There were very few people in the CP and lines were short. A female soldier was checking the papers of Palestinians in Passageway 4. In a burst of good will she started a kind of friendly free-for-all with the male soldier sitting next to her, all in full view of the 8 amazed Palestinians waiting patiently by the turnstile. We phoned the hotline and asked them to intervene. Someone must have spoken with the 2 soldiers on duty because she, at least, looked pretty sour thereafter.
We wandered around the CP for a half an hour or so without finding anything else to report, so we decided to take a look at (and show Pamela) another CP – Atara. 
The CP itself was abandoned, but the pillbox nearby was manned by several soldiers. The views along the way were amazing – the green fields in the crystal air, the hills of the Bashan Range as well as the towers of the Tel Aviv skyline against the sea. But the most amazing view that we saw appeared suddenly right ahead of us as we approached the turn-off to P'sagot and Kufr Yakub: the whole hillside ahead had suddenly been covered by rows of "caravillas" (mobile homes) standing on multiple rows of beautifully built stone terraces.
The CP itself was abandoned, but the pillbox nearby was manned by several soldiers. The views along the way were amazing – the green fields in the crystal air, the hills of the Bashan Range as well as the towers of the Tel Aviv skyline against the sea. But the most amazing view that we saw appeared suddenly right ahead of us as we approached the turn-off to P'sagot and Kufr Yakub: the whole hillside ahead had suddenly been covered by rows of "caravillas" (mobile homes) standing on multiple rows of beautifully built stone terraces.We turned in to the new settlement and the (female) soldier guarding the gate told us that we were standing at the entrance to the new "Megaron" (which has been erected to replace the old illegal outpost which the government had promised to demolish). The new settlement calls itself a "neighborhood" of the older settlement Kfar Ya'akov, further away up the hill. On our way back to Jerusalem we searched for a vantage point from which to photograph the abomination and found one in the parking lot of the Rami Levi Supermarket in Sha'ar Benyamin. Natanya's photos are attached.
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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