Bir Nabala checkpoint 16.12.07

Bir Nabala checkpoint 16.12.07, originally uploaded by MachsomWatch.

"Palestinian vehicles are slowed down after exiting the CP as they are forced to maneuver through spikes and obstacles.
Photographer: Tamar Fleishman"

I came across this photo on machsomwatch's flicker sets. This is the checkpoint I have to cross to go almost anywhere. I wouldn't have the nerve to get out of the car and take a picture there though. People get nervous when you start taking pictures at a checkpoint. I took a couple pictures at Kalandia checkpoint once, and got quickly shooed away by an older Palestinian man who was worried I would get in trouble. The cars in the picture are all heading north out of the Bir Nabala enclave, toward Ramallah, and they don't get checked. They just have to run an obstacle course of small walls on the road and spikes on the side of the road, going on and off the pavement like a mini autocross. They seem to rearrange these obstacles every now and then to keep people alert. The place where the south bound traffic is lined up is not in this picture, but you can see where the soldiers check the cars in the background.