Qalandiya, Wed 17.2.10, Afternoon
Natanya translating
16.20 IN front of the car lanes in a northerly direction a van of the Department of supervision of the Jerusalem municipality. A policeman and an inspector were standing next to it. At the side a car had been detained. The story. The soldier had stopped the car to check documents. The driver opened the door and his cigarette fell out of his mouth on to the ground. The driver wanted to pick it up and the policeman said to him, "Don't pick the cigarette up. You are getting a fine for throwing out a cigarette. The driver had to wait for the summons, a fine of 430 shekel because of disturbing the peace and the cleanliness of the area.
The inspector had not come past by change and caught a delinquent dirtying the clean and spick and span checkpoint of Qalandiya. He was waiting in ambush for anyone whom he could accuse of a delinquency and get money out of him. Our presence embarrassed the inspector and the policeman who stopped some cars and checked their papers. Afterwards the two decided it seems that that day they would not be able to extort more money and decided to go home.
We asked the policeman what was the meaning of the punishment of the cigarette on the ground when Qalandiya itself is so filthy and where there are no rubbish bins or toilets. We said that we were amazed that inspectors such as he are not seen in other places in Jerusalem. He explained to us that Qalandiya is his area and any other areas are not his business.
We went to the northern side and turned the car to carry on our journey but it was absolutely impossible because the whole area was jammed.
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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-16-2026Qalandiya CP: shortcut
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