The Daily Harassments [by Israeli soldiers] at Qalandiya Checkpoint

IMEMC - Natanya Ginsburg - Machsom Watch



...a Palestinian ran to ask us to go into the checking area where an elderly couple from Gaza had had their permit to return home confiscated. ...discovered that the man had had an operation (we think he had a stent inserted). ...their permit was taken from them and they were told to return to Ramallah. They had no where to go and no money left -- the woman was in tears....

...there were about 30 people on line in Passageway No. 2 and 40 in Passageway No. 4. Once again there was an announcement over the PA system that Passageway 4 was closed and Passageway 3 was open. Once again people scrambled to get in the new line....

...At one point there was a whole group of foreign tourists in line (in Passageway 2) and while I was watching I saw the soldiers calling them to hurry through the turnstile. As the last of them went through and a Palestinian tried to follow the gate was locked in his face and the soldier shouted that the area was closed. Again the Palestinians were sent to another sleeve and, after an interval of about 5 minutes, to yet another...

A young man whom I had seen when we came into the checking area had evidently been sent from one sleeve to another, each time landing at the end of the line. By this time he was very angry and ran to the soldier sitting in the booth at the entrance and shouted at him. All this time the rain continued to pound...

...I saw the young man mentioned above manage to finally enter the checking area. He showed the soldier his ID and took his things from the x-ray machine and then I heard him shouting at her in anger, but he did not threaten her. Then I heard her shouting at him, `Who do you think you are talking to? Do you think I am your girlfriend?` At that point, she locked the second turnstile (the exit), imprisoning him in the examination area. She also prevented anyone else from coming through to be checked.

The man went back to her a few times asking why she did not let him out and she just sat there doing nothing. Then she called him and told him to enter one of the doors in the examination area, which he did. But she still did not open the first turnstile for people to go through. I went off for a few minutes and when I came back I saw through the bars that articles of clothing which had not been there previously were lying on the floor inside.

I asked one of the men whose clothing it was and they said that the young man had been ordered to throw his clothing down there. I do not know where they stripped him but his jacket was there and also his trousers on the dirty floor so I knew that he was inside in his underclothing... Full story