Israeli forces stand at the Qalandiya military checkpoint, separating Ramallah and Jerusalem, where a designated lane is marked for holders of the Israeli-issued blue identification cards. These IDs are carried by Palestinian residents of East Jerusalem who have permanent-resident status, which grant them a level of mobility and access to Jerusalem that is denied to Palestinians with Palestinian Authority-issued IDs.
In Israel and the occupied territories, Palestinians and Israelis often travel on separate roads or through separate checkpoints—movement dictated by the type of ID they hold, not just their destination—in a system that echoes the past laws of apartheid-era South Africa. These segregated mobility systems have been increasing throughout the West Bank of late, as Israel aggressively escalates its efforts to annex large swathes of the area and empty Palestinian refugee camps there.