To ease traffic: IDF considers removing checkpoint on the road from Modi'in to Jerusalem

The IDF is considering removing Checkpoint 443 at the entrance to Jerusalem from Modi'in, aiming to ease heavy traffic jams. The Central Command has begun staff work with the police and authorities. Security officials consider the checkpoint unnecessary, as the road runs outside the Green Line with no access from Palestinian villages. The deployment of technological means to detect Palestinians on foot is being examined. The IDF emphasizes this is only a preliminary examination.

The IDF is examining the possibility of removing Checkpoint 443 on the road to Jerusalem from Modi'in, as reported in the Kan News broadcast. In recent weeks, the Central Command has begun staff work together with the police and local authorities, aiming to ease the heavy traffic jams at the entrance to the capital. Thousands of vehicles reach the checkpoint daily, and it is located on a road that has no access from Palestinian villages, even though it runs outside the Green Line. Therefore, security establishment officials believe the checkpoint is unnecessary. One of the alternatives being examined is the deployment of technological means along the road to ensure there are no Palestinians who arrived on foot in the road's route. If the move is implemented, thousands of drivers will benefit from the absence of the constant traffic jam at the site, and the manpower of the forces serving at the checkpoint will also be saved. However, the IDF emphasizes that this is only a preliminary examination, and soldiers may remain at the checkpoint even if inspection procedures are changed.