Qalandiya, Tue 21.2.12, Morning
Translator: Charles K.
By our count, during recent weeks there’s been no difference between the number of people going through the checkpoint on a “good” day and the number going through on a “bad” day. The only difference lies in the speed of the inspections during the early morning hours. If only three inspection lanes are open before 06:00, there will be congestion that isn’t relieved until after 08:00.
All five inspection lanes should be opened at 04:30 to prevent the extreme congestion that continues all morning.
06:00, after the shift change, is too late to open all the crossing lanes. The pupils, women and merchants arrive at the checkpoint to find it completely jammed, with the laborers still stuck on line, and everyone suffers.
Qalandiya – 06:00
It’s freezing outside, about 3 degrees Celsius. The checkpoint is packed. Only three inspection lanes open, only about 20 people on line at each. More than 300 laborers wait on the regular line, about 60 wait for the humanitarian gate to open, and about 50 more sit on the benches under the canopy because of the congestion.
The two ecumenical activists arrived at 04:30; they report that not only were there just three inspection lanes open the whole time, but that people weren’t admitted to the line quickly. Until 5 AM the line in front of the revolving gates was orderly, but then the younger men arrived, forced their way to the front and everything fell apart.
Qalandiya – 06:30
During the past half hour, 395 people entered for inspection.
The humanitarian gate first opened at 06:10; 92 people went through and were sent to inspection lanes 4 and 5. Not everyone waiting managed to go through; they waited 25 more minutes for the gate to open again. Some of the children joined the regular line, which continued to be as congested as it had been when we arrived.
Qalandiya – 07:00
During the past half hour, 460 people entered for inspection. The inspection lanes are congested.
80 more people had entered the inspection lanes by the time we left. The inspection lanes are congested, and the congestion doesn’t cease outside either. About 200 people still wait on the regular line and about another 70 on the humanitarian line.
Again – the problem is caused by not allowing people to cross as quickly as possible in the early hours – before 06:00. There’s no way to eliminate the congestion if all the inspection lanes are manned only after the congestion has become unbearable.
The ecumenical activists joined the line at 07:30 and got through inspection only at 08:05. That’s already too late for most of the laborers, pupils, teachers and physicians.
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 FleishmanApr-26-2026Qalandiya. Things you see on the way
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