Israeli checkpoints in the occupied West Bank have become part of everyday life for the thousands of Palestinians who must pass through them daily.<br /><br />Israel claims that the checkpoints are vital to stop suicide bombers entering its cities.<br /><br />But critics say they are a form of collective punishment - effectively sealing off Palestinian cities, hindering travel and access to schools and medical care and jeopardising any hopes for peace.<br /><br />Hazem al-Qawasmeh, the founder of Karama, or the International Campaign for Freedom of Movement for Palestinians, says: "These military checkpoints restrict Palestinians' movement and turn their cities into prisons. The West Bank has now become a big prison. It is separated from the Gaza Strip and Jerusalem.<br /><br />"Qalandiya checkpoint is one of the worst checkpoints in the West Bank. Palestinians have to wait there for hours as they try to cross from the West Bank to Jerusalem."<br /><br />Hard Crossings follows the Palestinians who must navigate these checkpoints and for whom they have become a frustrating and often humiliating feature of daily life.
