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Check Point

An ambulance is stopped, and the sick people inside brought out to explain their ailments. A mother is separated from her very young children. Young Palestinians laugh and throw snowballs at Israeli soldiers, who jovially respond in kind. One Israeli soldier harasses a pretty Palestinian girl.

Another refers to the Arabs as “animals,” and suggests the documentary crew is making a film for the Discovery Channel. Palestinians wait in the pouring rain while an Israeli soldier eats his lunch. Another young soldier gets into a prolonged argument with a Palestinian man because he’d told the man an hour earlier that he would be able to cross back over the checkpoint to return home, and now a curfew is in effect.

After his superior reluctantly lets the man through, the embarrassed soldier turns to the filmmaker and pleads, “Try to make me look good…not like the bad guy.” Language barriers constantly interfere with the soldiers’ ability to do their jobs. “It’s not my decision,” is a constant refrain as they turn people away. Israeli filmmaker Yoav Shamir once served his army reserve duty as a checkpoint guard, which was what inspired him to make this documentary, Checkpoint.

For 80 minutes, Shamir simply shows us videotape of what happens at the various checkpoints that the Israeli government operates, which are in place to regulate the travel of Palestinians, purportedly in an effort to combat terrorism. The documentary uses no narration, and the soldiers and Palestinians at the checkpoints are never identified. The subtitles simply tell the audience where the checkpoint being videotaped is located.

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  1. You would have thought that the Jews would understand persecution and yet they treat people from Palestine like animals (or even worse). I used to believe the holocaust was an atrocity, but now I see that Israel and the US are worse than any dictator that has lived. The State of Israel only exists due to the US, they have constantly invaded neighbouring countries sine 1958, Palestine existed well before Israel/US and yet are treated so disgustingly, time someone wiped out the US and Israelm then, and only then, may peace be upon peoples of the planet.

  2. I have been an ignorant fool listening to the media, news and the western distorted gossip about muslims etc. I am going to make it my personal aim to make friends with some muslim families, until now I have been a brainwashed fool from my own news and media propaganda. I HAVE BEEN DECEIVED by my own media and government.

    • You wish some Western person thought this. With a tag like Alah you want to pretend to be one of us. Israel is such a small country…why don’t these Arabs go live in Saudi Arabia, Jordan, Iraq,Iran? Don’tyou know you can’t fight God? He gave themthis land.

  3. God knows we HATE the zionist scum. They lie, they murder, they steal. I am ashamed to say for the first time in my life “I think Hitler was onto something” that we have yet to learn . These cowards and america should be bombed off the planet. These lying murderers make me sick to the stomach. If they did this in my country to us, I would certainly pick up a gun and shoot as many as I could. And I don’t like guns, war or injustices. I refuse to have a jews as my friend after watching this video. These people don’t have a god, just greed and brainwashed fools. the sooner we rid the planet of them the sooner we can start a peaceful planet. I am thinking things I have never thought in my mind after watching this.

  4. I have just returned from a trip to Palestine, The Israeli state has been built on the land of Palestinians and through brutal force more land is taken every day. Checkpoints are a daily occurrence of which are meant to disrupt the working and family lives of Palestinians making it almost impossible for people to work or access education. Myself (being British) was told to get off a bus to walk through the checkpoint after having my passport and handbag searched. Israeli’s tend to have a ‘make it up as you go along’ policy at checkpoints depending on how they feel. Also the term curfew can mean that no body is allowed out the house for several hours, or as in the case of a town i visited up to 90 days, of which people can only leave their house for up to 30mins per day. The people of Palestine believe that the world does not know what is happening to them and that the world does not care. They are afraid that people think they are terrorists, as portrayed by Israeli media. Having stayed in Israel and Palestine and after seeing for myself the whole story, to me it is clear that the Palestinian people are enduring a restricted life forced upon them unnecessarily by the Israeli occupation.

  5. What an awful place to have to live and I mean that for both sides of this intracable argument which can only end in bloodshed. Thing is the Israelis have a large stockpile of nuclear and biological weapons which they have said they WILL use while the Palestinians have small arms ( at best ) and sticks and stones.

  6. Zionists are the modern day Nazis backed by and condoned by the USA without whom  Israel would be what it really is ; a small impoverished land with no friends in the world.

  7. These are crimes against humanity. The israeli wannabe soldiers are clowns and an embarassment.

  8. I’m not anti Israel or anti-semitic at all.  I love jews and have Jewish friends.  I don’t  know why a country doesn’t help Palestinians to emigrate and just leave.  Let the Palestininans come to America.

  9. Perhaps if palis hadn’t conducted human homicide bombings throughout Israel, started 5 wars and maybe if every pali organization wasn’t dedicated to the total destruction of the Jewish state then I might feel sorry for these people.

  10. why should or would any sit back quietly when someone takes their land through laws which were made to exploit the owners weaknesses for their own benefit even if it meant that they would die of hunger and lack of shelter. InshAllah the Palestinians will rise and overcome this inhumane behavior its unacceptable and no one else would accept it and nor shall we. 

  11. you dont know anythign about zionists you idiot , everyone points to it as such a bad thing! i am a zionist and proud , it is the belief in our right to a home which you have all denied us for centuries whilst persecuting us worse than anyother in any time before.
    the poor palestinians who rejected the 1948 partition plan which gave them an arab state called palestine which FYI the jews agreed to , are now demanding we give them back what they are owed…. well i tell you over my dead body will i give my land to a person who wants not only to kill israelis but also to kill jews , a government who condones suicide bombings and human shields , you can give me all the anti israel anti zionist replies youw ant , but the reality is you have not served in the idf , you do not live here and you do not see the  reality of it , you swallow the spoonfullls of anti zionist anti semitic propaganda designed to de legitimise the state which has more of a right than any other in the world to be there. not only is this true , but there was never a state of palestine….. before israel there was the ottoman empires control over the land , then the british took it in WWI and the balfour declaration and bam you have israel , there was no palestine. palestine is a name given by the romans to the land itself,  there is no such thing as a “palestinian” they are a mix of jordanians,syrians and lebanese. This concoction created by the former heads of the “palestinian” higherarcy that they are a strong peoples who are defending their land is bullshit. they had no nationalism no flag no national anthem no borders prior to israel, it is once the jews come that they decide to make a fuss , even when we accepted the 1948 partition plan which they rejected , all who watch this documentary good luck keep swallowing this propaganda and you will carry on regurjetating the shit that the western adn arab media want you to , how about you do your own research and try look at both sides of the argument before you are so quick to attack the Zionists….

    • Let me teach you one thing kid, stating a sentence by calling people an idiot will not get your whole message read. If you are a genuine smart Zionist then you should know better. Grow up before trying to persuade people that Zionists are right. Your reaction reaffirms my statement.

  12. lol these are the “chosen people”? A bunch of neurotic wannabe emo kids with guns? They are just toy soldiers!

    Free Palestine and save yourselves some money – or don’t, and have the whole world turn against you. I don’t care. You don’t mean shit anyway. If we take your money away, you will be as poor as the Palestinians. And that money is already drying up. Better start making yourself some new friends, and start making your own money.

    Cue replies from religious nutbags.

  13. The problem is not the Jews. The problem is the Zionist Government.

  14. All of your comments against the Jews are quite inaccurate… The Israel/Palestinian war is not a war about religion. Over the years the media has played it out to be Jews against Muslims or Jews against the rest of the world. This is a common mistake. The war is between Israel and its surrounding countries. LIving in Israel are men and woman of all religious backgrounds including Muslims. Enough with these prejudice comments. This documentary is NOT about Jewish people… in fact it is about 2 countries, NOT religion. All of you prejudice neo-nazis are extremely naive people and need to get an education before you start posting bull $#@! like this on the internet. Congratulations on being uneducated, racist assholes trying to spread your dirty, false, naive and filthy opinions on the rest of us normal people living in the real world. peace and love   

  15. the Jew makes fun of everyone, they are rude, and they make people hate them from their asshole actions, i will never be friends with a jew, they steal land and wealth and they never have to face justice for this, in court.

  16. WOW! this is unbelievable….I have always thought of the israeli’s as our close ally and that they were being hated for no reason. This documentary just shocked me beyond belief. I am in the United States Army and these guys running this checkpoint are undisciplined jokes i wouldn’t even call them soldiers. Your supposed to be professional and conduct yourself in a manner that reflects your country. To me they are just punks that got handed a gun and authority and they are abusing it. I mean seriously did they go through any type of training? You cannot just hand anyone a gun and say ‘go play soldier’ or you will get a result similar to this…No wonder why the palestinians hate them so much show a little empathy even if they are your enemy. Do they not understand they reflect what people perceive as the way there countrymen are. So when they goto these checkpoints they are treated like sub-humans, insulted, and toyed with….The first thing the palestinians do is go home and tell friends and family about the treatment and bam! There is more fuel for hate. Maybe if you treat them with a little dignity then there can be some steps to securing peace but you treat them like this and you will get nowhere……Also were are these kids with guns leaders and subordinates?!? They need a senior ranking soldier to be there with them thats were a huge portion of blame needs to go also. If i was israeli i would be embarassed at this conduct and do something about it.

    • This is South African Apartheid. Israel has learnt well from SA. And of course Israel is in denial.  I can not understand why America defends them to no end-is it because of the Israeli Lobby in America. One thing Israel has to relize is that there is a Newtonian law of cause and effect so whatever harm you do unto others you will get back.

  17. WOW! this is unbelievable….I have always thought of the israeli’s as our close ally and that they were being hated for no reason. This documentary just shocked me beyond belief. I am in the United States Army and these guys running this checkpoint are undisciplined jokes i wouldn’t even call them soldiers. Your supposed to be professional and conduct yourself in a manner that reflects your country. To me they are just punks that got handed a gun and authority and they are abusing it. I mean seriously did they go through any type of training? You cannot just hand anyone a gun and say ‘go play soldier’ or you will get a result similar to this…No wonder why the palestinians hate them so much show a little empathy even if they are your enemy. Do they not understand they reflect what people perceive as the way there countrymen are. So when they goto these checkpoints they are treated like sub-humans, insulted, and toyed with….The first thing the palestinians do is go home and tell friends and family about the treatment and bam! There is more fuel for hate. Maybe if you treat them with a little dignity then there can be some steps to securing peace but you treat them like this and you will get nowhere……Also were are these kids with guns leaders and subordinates?!? They need a senior ranking soldier to be there with them thats were a huge portion of blame needs to go also. If i was israeli i would be embarassed at this conduct and do something about it.

  18. Yoav Shamir is a great director, also watch Flipping Out and Defamation both from Yoav Shamir.

  19. Seem like they are only missing the SS armband. Oh and the moron that harassed the girls,
    why dont he switch my place, perhaps he should try the deserts of Kandahar, Ill treat these people with respect, that some of the soldiers lack.

  20. Seem like they are only missing the SS armband. Oh and the moron that harassed the girls,
    why dont he switch my place, perhaps he should try the deserts of Kandahar, Ill treat these people with respect, that some of the soldiers lack.

  21. ok, so where are the concentration camps? where are the gas chambers, oh and how bout the starvation , diseases , torture and even cannibalism? (oh forgot bout Leningrad didn’t ya?) — comparing the israeli soldiers to nazis (which btw have killed lots of non- jewish ppl) is irrelevant… i think u guys need to watch a different documentary before leaving stupid, ignorant comments. stop hating and start observing: every government is corrupt and is the cause behind all wars. in this case, NEITHER governments are right, they’re simply making money by brainwashing their blind, obedient patriots… remember: WAR=$$$ that’s all

  22. Must be where DHS and TSA get their training.

  23. so depressing.  The Zionists  are Nazis

  24. IsraHell: a terrorist state.

  25. i might consider to become a radical if me or my family would be treated like that.  

    Faith is the biggest killer, cant anybody tell these people that God, Allah, Shiva, Thor, Odinn, Budda, Satan and Santa are not real. Cant believe this is still happening in the 21th century. If one existed I would think twice before praising him seeing how he lets his people suffer. Also saying “this is my land, because god says so” is just crazy. This is my land because ive lived here for x years is closer to real life here on earth.

  26. Real Heros!
    The great courageous soldiers of israel!

    Someone pass me a vomit bag please.

  27. Real Heros!
    The great courageous soldiers of israel!

    Someone pass me a vomit bag please.

  28. this documentary was one sided

  29. this documentary was one sided

  30. this documentary was one sided

  31. Keep the war going. Keep the middle east occupied with hatred. Keep the terrorist running. This will ultimately cease their opportunity for development. Most significantly, the middle east will result in nothing to offer but their fossil fuels which is the POWER that runs our every day life. People will be pushed into religion due to the high uncertainty they face every day which results in lowering each individual’s capabilities and dumb down the population. Thus enabling easy manipulation of people’s thoughts and facilitate a more centralized control.

    If you people think the west (governments) genuinely cares about peace in the middle east then you have been greatly deceived. They really don’t care about the well being of Israelis nor the Palestines. In fact, they see nothing but benefits from persisting conflicts. The more Jews and Arabs fight the lesser opportunity for development thus, essentially giving away their power to western competition. The situation has sink into a point where there is no return.

    I must say if this was all planned then which ever group of people planned this strategy is a true genius. But if this is one of the situations where it just happened, then these Jews and Arabs are not so bright. Especially the Zionists (if they’re not holding other interests).

  32. and the jews wonder why everybody wants to kill them maybe they will be wiped of the map we Americans shouldn’t support them at all  

  33. Heartbreaking, noone deserves to be treated like this. Inhumane, totally unacceptable whatever stance you take on the subject its just not on to see people being treated so badly and like animals. I count my blessings everyday and pray for those innocent families and grown men having to be at the mercy of these soldiers.   : (

  34. Heartbreaking, noone deserves to be treated like this. Inhumane, totally unacceptable whatever stance you take on the subject its just not on to see people being treated so badly and like animals. I count my blessings everyday and pray for those innocent families and grown men having to be at the mercy of these soldiers.   : (

  35. Dear me, what a lack of clarity! Endless confusion that’s being going on for thousands of years.. The human race is a disgrace!

  36. Dear me, what a lack of clarity! Endless confusion that’s being going on for thousands of years.. The human race is a disgrace!

  37. open the gas chambers and kill all the jews ! this world will become peacefull ! HAIL HITLER.

  38. Isreali terrorists wearing the disguise of military…Palestinians using civilians as sheilds..To a Canadian, such as myself, both sides of this coin are savage.

  39. how can anything positive arise from this systematic dehumanisation.people are getting tired & bored of cutting the israelis some slack ‘cos they’d had a shit run historically.it almost beggars belief that the poster child for holocaust has turned into hitler’s wet dream.
    come on isreal,pull your head out of the good book for 5 minutes & evolve with the rest of us 

  40. Looks like the Israeli’s were trained well by the Nazis and want to see the Palestinians suffer the way their forefathers did in the Warsaw Ghetto….

  41. there are no such thing as jews and muslims.  its just poor people being pitted against eachother by their rich slavemasters.  These religions are illusions and only exist in peoples minds, but the damaged and lost lives are very real.  The nazis thought that they were the supreme chosen race as well, and look where that got them.  Treating people like cattle can only lead to killing people like cattle.

  42. there are no such thing as jews and muslims.  its just poor people being pitted against eachother by their rich slavemasters.  These religions are illusions and only exist in peoples minds, but the damaged and lost lives are very real.  The nazis thought that they were the supreme chosen race as well, and look where that got them.  Treating people like cattle can only lead to killing people like cattle.

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