Israel’s border checkpoints have an undeservedly bad reputation in the mainstream media. Pro-Palestinian activists and those sympathetic to their cause often use the checkpoints to support their claims that Israel is a racist and apartheid state bent on oppressing the Palestinians.
The truth paints a very different picture. It is true that Palestinians traveling between territories controlled by Israel and the Palestinian Authority must pass through checkpoints guarded by Israeli soldiers and border police. Yes, this is inconvenient, but most often is no more a hassle than a standard inspection when crossing the US-Canadian border, for instance. Unfortunately, these stops have become a necessary part of life due to the very real security threat posed by terrorists attempting to infiltrate Israel and attack Jewish civilians. It’s not racist. It’s common sense.
The IDF and border police are carefully trained to spot the telltale psychological warning signs of a terrorist, and how to distinguish between a suicide bomber and a man commuting to work. Only a handful of the Palestinians who pass through these checkpoints are actual threats. Most are simply people attempting to earn a decent living and visit family. The IDF knows this, and does their best to make the inspection process as painless and efficient as possible.
Without the checkpoints, however, it would be easy for a terrorist to cross into Israel and detonate a bomb or drive a car into a crowd. It still happens occasionally, despite Israel’s efforts, which reinforces the need to keep the checkpoints in place.
“Of the thousands of peaceful Palestinians who cross through, we have to find the few who have come to murder Israelis,” explains Lt.-Col. Gil Mamon, commander of a battalion stationed west of Ramallah.
In 2014, soldiers at Israeli checkpoints apprehended more than 12 terrorists attempting to carry out attacks in Israel. In the last year, border guards have noticed an increase in the number of weapons intercepted at checkpoints. Knives, in particular, are more common. More and more Israelis are being attacked and murdered with knives as opposed to bombs or firearms, which makes it critical that these weapons be found before entering Israel.
Israel’s desire to minimize the disruption of Palestinian life makes it difficult to provide airtight security for Israel’s citizens, but the soldiers are committed to finding a fair and workable balance.
An officer in Mamon’s battalion explained the challenge he and the other guards face in doing their jobs:
“If one side is tipped too far to security, there would be a line of thousands of vehicles stretching back. Checks would be 100 percent secure, but there would be severe harm to the fabric of life.
On the other side of the spectrum, Palestinians would have full freedom of movement, but terrorists and deadly weapons would move into Israel with ease.
We always have to balance between the needs. To create security, and cause as little disruption to Palestinians; most of them come to work, and want quiet. There is a handful of extremists.”
It is easy for Israel’s critics to look at the checkpoints and call them unfair, but these same people think nothing of submitting to security checks in airports all around the globe. Israel is doing nothing that any other nation would not do when faced with the same threats. Rather than condemnation, they deserve credit for working so hard to accommodate the needs of the Palestinians who pass through their borders.
