Qalqilya:Israeli occupation forces on Wednesday obstructed the movement of Palestinians near the Habla tunnel at the southern entrance of Qalqilya. Local sources reported that a military checkpoint was set up at the city entrance, where Palestinian-licensed vehicles were stopped and passengers' ID cards were checked.
According to Palestine News and Information Agency – WAFA, these measures came shortly after the release of 90 Palestinian prisoners, correlating with the Gaza ceasefire effective from January 19, 2025. The Israeli forces have increased military measures across the occupied West Bank, citing the Israeli-Iranian conflict as a pretext, leading to further isolation of cities and governorates with military gates, barriers, and concrete blocks.
These restrictions are part of broader efforts by Israeli colonists to displace Palestinians from their lands to establish illegal Jewish colonies that fragment Palestinian communities. Israel imposes severe limitations on Palestinians' freedom of movement within the occupied West Bank, utilizing 925 checkpoints and barriers affecting 3.4 million Palestinians in the West Bank and East Jerusalem.
The network of restrictions includes 89 permanently staffed checkpoints, 218 partially staffed checkpoints, 232 road gates, 114 linear closures, 167 earth mounds, and 105 roadblocks. These measures, presented under the guise of security, aim to entrench Israel's long-standing military occupation of the West Bank and its settlement expansion, enforced with routine and often deadly violence against Palestinians.