Qalandiya

Share:

Place:

Tags:

Humanitarian Queue

Soldiers at checkpoints

Observers:

Chana Stein (translating), Ronit Dahan-Ramati (reporting)

Jun-15-2016

|

Morning

Qalandiya

5.20. Walking across to the Palestinian side, we saw very short queues and all 5 checking stations open. But very soon many more people arrived and the lines lengthened. A policeman arrived, joining the soldier in the cubicle who was operating the turnstiles. Soon after, the policeman apparently got a call on his phone, tells the soldier “I’ll be back soon” and goes off at a run. We were afraid that some incident had occurred, especially as soon afterwards we heard the sound of shots from afar, but nothing seemed to affect the checkpoint. The usua morning routine continued. We went outside and saw that motor traffic was passing as usual. During the course of our watch we heard shots in the distance, but this did not affect the checkpoint itself.

Because of the fast, the tea kiosk was closed, but next to it were counters ready for selling clothing and shoes later in the day. People are not smoking and the place is a bit cleaner than usual. As they do not take lunch, many people are without bags.

Suddenly at 5.40, checkpoint no.5 is closed and opens only about 25 minutes later. The policeman does not return, but two security guards arrive. The DCO officer arrived at 6.05, but did not open the humanitarian gate and sent people to join the regular queue. But at 6.20 she did open the gate.

By this time the queues were reaching into the parking lot, but progress was reasonably quick and remained orderly. Shortly afterwards the policewoman arrived. At 6.35, the DCO officer declared that the humanitarian gate would no longer open, and sent everyone to the regular queue, though she herself remained. The policewoman left at 6.40.

At 6.45 a woman arrived with two children. The daughter was bald and it was clear that they were heading for medical treatment. The DCO officer approached to open the gate for them. Immediately lots of women and other ‘humanitarian’ cases rushed towards the gate. The regular lines shortened dramatically. The soldier allowed in the woman and children, but sent all the others back. This caused a lot of anger and confusion, but things quickly calmed down. Meanwhile, the woman and children, who did not know the procedure, after passing through the humanitarian gate, instead of going towards the checking station, entered an area limited to ‘our forces’, whose gate had remained open. A guard went to them and politely accompanied them to the correct place. Subsequently, the humanitarian gate was opened occasionally. Obviously there is no clear policy about when to open it. At 6.55 the DCO officer left. After a few minutes she returned, but did not open the gate again.

At 7.00 we joined the queue. While waiting we noticed that a DCO officer and a soldier arrived. At one point there were 4 security guards and 4 soldiers. But soon the DCO officer and soldier left, as well as some of the guards. It took 25 minutes for us to pass.

Location Description

Qalandiya Checkpoint

See all reports for this place

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)

Apr-5-2024

Tamar Fleishman

Qalandiya: The men who were refused passage, return

View the full album