IDF: No change in procedures for entry of Palestinians into Israel

The denial came after many Palestinians tried over the past few days to enter Israel with their vehicles.

By KHALED ABU TOAMEH
An Israeli border police officer and Israeli soldier at a temporary "checkpoint" in Jerusalem on April 16, 2020. (photo credit: YONATAN SINDEL/FLASH90)
An Israeli border police officer and Israeli soldier at a temporary "checkpoint" in Jerusalem on April 16, 2020.
(photo credit: YONATAN SINDEL/FLASH90)
The IDF on Thursday denied any change in procedures for West Bank Palestinians who wish to enter Israel.
The denial came after many Palestinians tried over the past few days to enter Israel with their vehicles.
In the past week, rumors that the IDF was now allowing Palestinians to enter Israel with their vehicles without obtaining permits from the Israeli authorities have spread like wildfire on social media platforms.
The rumors came after thousands of Palestinian families entered Israel through border crossings that were abandoned by IDF soldiers in the northern West Bank in the past two weeks.
On Wednesday, the IDF closed two border crossings near the city of Tulkarm, through which the Palestinians entered Israel without permits. Palestinians said that IDF soldiers had turned a blind eye to the massive influx of Palestinians families, many of whom seized the opportunity to visit Jaffa, Netanya, Haifa and other Israeli cities.
On Thursday, soldiers fired tear gas and briefly detained scores of Palestinians who attempted to cross into Israel through the border crossings near Tulkarm.
Palestinian sources said that many Palestinians who entered Israel without permits have still not returned to their homes in the West Bank.
Hundreds of Palestinians, convinced that Israel has changed the procedures for entering the country, tried to enter into Israel with their cars, but were turned back by IDF soldiers at several border crossings, the sources added.
“We heard that Israel was now allowing West Bank residents to enter Israel with their cars without permits,” said Mohammed Najjar, a resident of the West Bank town of Abu Dis, southeast of Jerusalem. “But when we arrived at the checkpoint near Ma’aleh Adumim, the soldiers stopped us, confiscated our ID cards and ordered us to return to Abu Dis. The soldiers were surprised by the large number of cars with Palestinian plates that tried to cross into Israel.”
Major-General Kamil Abu Rukun, head of the Defense Ministry’s Coordinator of Government Activities in the Territories (COGAT), denied that Israel has changed its policy regarding the entry of Palestinians into Israel.
“In recent days, rumors have been circulating on social media that Palestinian residents of Judea and Samaria can enter Israel with their cars on Thursday and Friday of every week without permission,” Abu Rukun said. |In addition, a rumor has been circulating that anyone who has a BMC permit (issued to senior Palestinian businessmen) can enter Israel with his car freely and without having a permit for his car. These rumors and posts are pure fabrication and completely untrue. The lies mislead the public and harm the Palestinian population, since there has been no change in the procedures for entering Israel.”
Abu Rukun warned that legal measures are being taken against those who violate the procedures and said that severe penalties will be imposed against those who break the law and act contrary to the established procedures.