A sweeping audit released Tuesday by State Comptroller Matanyahu Engelman paints a troubling picture of security, management, and coordination failures along the Seam Line and the crossings surrounding Yerushalayim, shortcomings that have accumulated over many years.
The report evaluates the preparedness and performance of the authorities responsible for the barrier and crossings, with particular attention to the lessons of the October 7 massacre and the Swords of Iron War. Engelman’s findings indicate that longstanding government decisions were not properly implemented and that operational weaknesses remain unresolved.
One of the central findings concerns the physical barrier itself. According to the audit, only 61% of the several hundred kilometers comprising the seam line route are protected by a physical obstacle. In the remaining areas, wide gaps allow Palestinians to cross without inspection. In some places, including an 11-kilometer stretch on one route and a six-kilometer stretch on another, no barrier exists at all—conditions the Comptroller described as posing a significant risk of terrorist infiltration.
The report also highlights systemic problems at the crossings. It notes the lack of an approved operating framework, the failure to carry out key government decisions regarding civilian management, and what it describes as an insufficient response by the Shin Bet to professional recommendations. Despite a Prime Ministerial decision dating back to 2005, not a single crossing in the Yerushalayim perimeter sector has been transferred to civilian operation.
Further criticism is directed at the Israel Police, which, according to the audit, have been running the crossings for roughly 20 years without a formal doctrine or permanent command structure. Of the 16 crossings in the sector, only two are supervised by commanders formally authorized for the role. Engelman warned that this situation creates dangerous security gaps and weakens coordination among the IDF, police, Border Guard, and civilian security elements.
On the ground, the audit found that Border Guard units were reassigned from routine security duties in the area to other missions, diminishing the overall defensive posture along the seam line. The report also cites inconsistent and incomplete reporting between the IDF and police regarding infiltration incidents, resulting in a fragmented and uncoordinated response.
Additional deficiencies identified include aging infrastructure, manpower shortages, inadequate inspection equipment, and failures in coordination between government ministries. One example cited is the prolonged delay in opening the subsidence road at the Qalandiya crossing, which the report attributes to disputes between the Ministry of Transportation and the police.
Among the Comptroller’s recommendations are completing the civilianization of the crossings, establishing a clear police operating doctrine, improving intelligence-sharing among all relevant agencies, and immediately closing existing gaps in the barrier. The report also calls for reexamining the route of the barrier based on updated threat assessments.
Reacting to the findings, the Regavim movement issued a sharply worded response, saying: “The State Comptroller’s report addressing the October 7 scenario in the Yerushalayim area is welcome, but it focuses on marginal issues. The seam line will always be breached. Every day, dozens and hundreds of Arabs from Judea and Samaria cross the fence. Even the most expensive and fortified fence in the south was breached within minutes by terrorists wearing flip-flops.”
Regavim added that fences alone cannot prevent terrorism, arguing that the roots of the problem lie in education, territorial withdrawals, failed agreements, and weak governance. “In Yerushalayim, as elsewhere,” the organization said, “only firm control of the territory-through military and civilian presence, settlement, and governance-can address the dangerous security reality facing the State of Israel.”
{Matzav.com}
