Israel closes Jerusalem’s Shufat checkpoint, obstructs movement of Palestinians
The Israeli army closed a checkpoint separating the Shufat refugee camp from Jerusalem city centre on Tuesday without warning, leaving thousands of Palestinians stranded, sources have said.
Locals said that the closure has curtailed the movement of students to schools outside the walled camp and employees who work in the city.
Palestinian security sources told The New Arab that thousands of people were not able to leave the camp this morning after the army abruptly closed the checkpoint to traffic, causing huge traffic jams.
Shufat refugee camp is located within the municipal boundaries of Jerusalem but was separated from it with a huge eight-metre-high concrete wall and a checkpoint in 2004.
It has a population of more than 25,000 people and is administered by the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA).
The checkpoint restricts the daily life of over 70,000 people living behind the wall.