Palestinian worker Imad Zoreiqat, 52, died on Tuesday morning at Israeli military checkpoint between West Bank cities of Bethlehem and Al-Khalil.
Palestinian Red Crescent said that the Palestinian worker had a severe heart attack that led to his immediate death while he was passing through the long and crowded passage of the checkpoint.
The Palestinian worker, who comes from Taffouh Neighbourhood in Al-Khalil. He works to feed his n12-member family.
Some 70,000 Palestinian workers pass through Israeli checkpoints every day. Those without proper permits often attempt to cross via gaps in the Israeli wall and mountain routes along the Green Line, running the risk of arrest or even being shot at by Israeli forces.
At the unearthly hour of 3.00am, crowds of Palestinian workers start to arrive at the Israeli military checkpoint in Bethlehem also known as ‘Checkpoint 300’. They are on their way to work in Israeli and Palestinian cities beyond the Green Line.
Many of those passing through the crossing are construction labourers; many come from the south of the West Bank and they make their journey in the dead night.
Checkpoint 300 is just one of 13 major crossings that allow Palestinians with work permits to cross, with an estimated of 70,000 Palestinians passing through them each day.
According to the International Labour Office’s (ILO) 2017 report, “crossings and checkpoints remain inadequate to handle such a vast number every day.”
Pictures by: Anne Paq
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