“Enough humiliation, enough degradation at the checkpoints! We are human beings, and we need to live like human beings!” Dr. Khaled Dweik, a resident of the overcrowded Jerusalem neighborhood of Kufr ‘Aqab, told Jerusalem Story.1

Dweik, who is known for his calm demeanor, was overcome by the worsening conditions in Kufr ‘Aqab caused by the Qalandiya checkpoint, which has turned the lives of residents into a living hell. He spoke to Jerusalem Story after the first protest of its kind broke out near the checkpoint on Sunday, July 26, 2026. An educational expert, Dweik explained that many teachers spend more than three hours at checkpoints on their way to schools in Kufr ‘Aqab or home in the afternoon.

The protest was organized by youth groups active on social media. An organizer who requested anonymity explained: “A group of patriotic and dedicated young people from Kufr ‘Aqab and al-Ram, active on social media, decided to take this step—a peaceful sit-in at the Qalandiya checkpoint.”2

The activist said that they decided to protest “after the situation reached an unbearable level. We spend more hours stuck in traffic jams and overcrowding at checkpoints than we do in our own homes,” he said. “We are dying a slow death every day, and all of us in Jerusalem are experiencing this, not just those living beyond the wall.”

He added:

He paused and released a long breath, recognizing the often-impassable obstacles to change under Israeli occupation. “We hope to stand together,” he concluded, “hand in hand, even if just this once, for the sake of our children.”

Long-time residents note the clear discrimination at Israeli checkpoints. The checkpoints that settlers use, like the one at Hizma, are easier to cross as very few cars are stopped and searched. However, at the Qalandia checkpoint, only used by Palestinians, every single car is stopped and searched, and passengers’ documents are checked individually.

Rabi Saeed, a teacher from Kufr ‘Aqab who works on the other side of the Separation Wall in Beit Hanina, said that her husband has to take her and her baby to the Qalandiya checkpoint at 5:00 a.m. so she can arrive to work by 8:00 a.m. He waits for them to pass. Though they live only a few kilometers from the school where she works, invasive, lengthy searches and arbitrary closures at Qalandiya checkpoint are routine.

The young couple are exhausted and are considering moving to live on the other side of the wall in Jerusalem. The problem is that they can’t afford it. The cost of living in neighborhoods within the wall are exorbitantly high, with monthly rents starting at $1,500. “We are waiting for divine intervention,” Saeed said, “hoping that the procedures at the checkpoints will be eased.”3

Shaker Abu Asab, a bus driver on the Ramallah–Jerusalem route, described how he is often forced to drop off passengers at Qalandiya checkpoint instead of continuing into Ramallah due to the standstill traffic and his inability to return to Jerusalem. “I witness people’s suffering daily,” he began. “At the Qalandiya checkpoint, every car waits, at best, between an hour and an hour-and-a-half to enter. The inspection process is also extremely slow, and in some cases, the wait can exceed four hours a day.”4

Abu Abdul Rahman, 35, works in the Atarot industrial settlement zone, which is less than 10 minutes from Qalandiya checkpoint. He explained that the distance between his home in Kufr ‘Aqab and his workplace is less than 3 kilometers, but it can take him hours to arrive due to the checkpoint. So, he leaves his house before sunrise to arrive at work by 8:00 a.m. Still, he is often late. “Treatment at Qalandiya is arbitrary and depends on the soldier’s mood. Of course, I don’t even consider going to the Jaba‘ checkpoint farther east, because this could cost me the entire day.”5

Samir Abu Khalaf, head of the Kufr ‘Aqab Neighborhoods Committee, said that recently, the Jaba‘ checkpoint has become a nightmare for anyone leaving Kufr ‘Aqab and al-Ram toward Jerusalem. “This checkpoint isn’t a checkpoint in the true sense. It’s just one or two police officers and one or two soldiers who completely halt traffic for hours on end, without any reason. The traffic jams are so severe that they reach the center of Kufr ‘Aqab.”6

He added:

The delays at Qalandiya also affect cars returning from Jerusalem to Kufr ‘Aqab. The large number of cars held up for long periods causes bottlenecks up and down the highway, as the same road is used by Palestinians from Ramallah and Bethlehem to travel back and forth.

Pharmacy owner and former cabinet minister in the Palestinian government, Bassim Khoury, told Jerusalem Story that a solution is necessary to overcome the unnecessary and harmful delays. A resident of Kufr ‘Aqab himself, Khoury declared: “I support nonviolent protests to shine a light on the unbearable situation at the Qalandia checkpoint.”7

Jerusalem engineer Simon Kouba praised the protest and called for a larger presence in upcoming ones. “The idea itself is excellent,” he explained, “but based on what we saw last Sunday, only a small number attended. That won’t be enough. We need a large number of people, including influential figures in the community.”8 He added that “the presence of some supportive foreigners, perhaps even well-known ones, would help. Good media coverage across all platforms is also crucial. All of this depends on the number of protesters.”

Abu Khalaf told Jerusalem Story that the purpose of the protest is to highlight the daily suffering of more than 150,000 people living in Kufr ‘Aqab. “Despite repeatedly appealing to officials in the Jerusalem Municipality to demand our rights, we have received no response,” he explained.

“So, we are holding this sit-in to demand our children’s right to reach their schools, and for the more than 10,000 chronically ill patients to be able to access hospitals in Jerusalem. We want our lives to be normal, like any other person’s.”

Palestinian officials in Ramallah insist that they would be happy to carry out repairs and to dig tunnels or bridges to ease the traffic, but they say that Israeli officials refuse to allow the Palestinian Authority (PA) in the area between the end of al-Bireh and Qalandiya checkpoint—Area C (see The Ghettoization of Kufr ‘Aqab). International officials, diplomats, and NGO staff are allowed to use alternative routes to avoid Qalandiya, including the DCO checkpoint near the Israeli Civil Administration headquarters in Beit El.

Beyond delays, Kufr ‘Aqab and Qalandiya refugee camp are subjected to extensive and sometimes daily incursions. Israeli forces, assisted by Jerusalem Municipality staff, storm these neighborhoods to impose taxes and fines, detain Palestinians, and shutter businesses deemed illegal in an attempt to assert Israeli control over the area (see Palestinians Explain the Motives behind Israel’s Operation “Capital Shield” in and around Jerusalem).

While Israel refuses to recognize Kufr ‘Aqab and Qalandiya refugee camp integral parts of Jerusalem, the PA refuses to unilaterally recognize them as falling under its jurisdiction for fear of a severe Israeli reprisal. (Under Israeli law, the PA is banned from operating inside the Jerusalem municipal boundaries in any capacity whatsoever [see Who Represents Palestinians in Jerusalem?]). Consequently, illegal construction has become rampant, with high-rise buildings springing up unchecked to meet the urgent housing crisis.

The prices of these apartments are lower compared to those in Jerusalem neighborhoods within the Separation Wall, incentivizing an increasing number of Palestinians struggling financially within Jerusalem to consider relocating to the already overcrowded neighborhoods beyond the wall (see House Hunting in Kufr ‘Aqab).

In fact, rents in the area are so reasonable, young couples from Jerusalem make up the majority of the residents of Kufr ‘Aqab. But this overcrowding has created hardships, such as water and power shortages during the summer months (see Kufr ‘Aqab, a Densely Populated Neighborhood in Jerusalem, Is Left High and Dry without Enough Water in Summer), limited basic social services (see In Jerusalem Neighborhoods Beyond the Wall, Healthcare Is Often Out of Reach), and repeated Israeli incursions.

As Dweik said at the end of his remarks: “Israeli officials have two options: either they tell us to return to Jerusalem and leave Kufr ‘Aqab—and we are ready to do that—or they find solutions for this ongoing human tragedy.”