International Checkpoint Watch - Daily Observations

Date:      18/08/01                                 Time: 8.00 - 10.00                            
Place Observed: Surda Checkpoint

Number of Soldiers Present:   3 for a few minutes while they changed the shift, 6 soldiers and then 3 again

Events Witnessed:

8:00     There are 3 soldiers at the checkpoint. Cars are allowed through from Birzeit to Ramallah, but not from Ramallah to Birzeit. Two soldiers approach us and ask what we are doing. We gave the standard answer.  Almost every car is stopped and the IDs of all passengers checked. 

8:15    One cooling van coming from Ramallah has to turn back.

8:30    An ambulance approaches the checkpoint from Birzeit. Soldiers let the cars in front go through quickly without checking in order to clear the way for the ambulance.

One of the soldiers comes over to us again and asks what we write. We reply: “What we see”. He then tells us in a very kind way, to tell him when we think that they do something wrong.

8:40    A jeep (No. 667423) arrives from Bet El. 3 new soldiers get off. For a few minutes there are 6 soldiers at the checkpoint. Then the 3 old ones get on the jeep, which takes off again. One of the 3 new soldiers turns out to be very strict, tense and rude. He overrules the decision of the other two soldiers to allow  people  to pass, and yells at them if they do so.    

8:45    A UN car arrives and has to wait for 5 Minutes. The IDs and car are checked.  A lot a men that are crossing the checkpoint on foot are stopped for Id check.   People with parcels or big bags have to show the contents to the soldiers.

9:15  One man in a yellow license plate (Israeli or Israeli residency plates) car had been detained for 50 Minutes. He told us that he passes the checkpoint every day. Sometimes they let him through, sometimes they stop him for a long time. We asked the soldiers why they were taking so long to check his car. The soldier rudely told us “not to talk". 

10:00  After two hours, the situation at the checkpoint did not get any better.  Only two cars with medical crosses were allowed to cross the checkpoint from Ramallah to Birzeit after the Israeli soldiers took a look in their cars.  A few people told us to register everything we see.