Ramadan Friday prayers at sunrise drew thousands of Palestinians to a heavily secured crossing toward Jerusalem’s Al-Aqsa Mosque compound, and photojournalist Leo Correa said his assignment put him in position to document the moment as worshippers moved through checkpoints in early morning light.

Correa said the process he photographed began before dawn, when Palestinians gathered to cross the Qalandia checkpoint, which sits between the West Bank city of Ramallah and Jerusalem. He said the photo was taken during the Muslim holy month of Ramadan, when “thousands of Palestinian worshippers line up” to attend Friday prayers at Al-Aqsa.

He said last Friday was the first Ramadan Friday prayers since a “shaky ceasefire deal between Israel and Hamas went into effect in October.” Correa said he had been assigned to cover the crossing from the West Bank and that the plan was to arrive very early in the morning so he could register what he described as the process worshippers undergo during Ramadan.

Correa said Israel restricted how many Palestinians could enter from the West Bank on Friday, setting the limit at 10,000. He added that Israel also limited eligibility based on age and gender, allowing men over 55 and women over 50, and allowing children up to 12, with restrictions that he said Israel has imposed in the past while citing security concerns.

In describing the photo itself, Correa said he arrived before sunrise and said the shutter was set around 7 a.m., when a large group of women gathered to enter the checkpoint. He said the group stood shoulder to shoulder while a group of men was also nearby, and he positioned himself to the side “against the light,” where silhouetted figures appeared and the bright background outlined their heads.

Correa said the mood shifted as people approached, saying that while many who arrived were talking and smiling, “a tense mood was noticeable” once they reached the concrete barrier. He said people stopped smiling and slowly moved forward, funnelled through the concrete into the checkpoint area.

Correa described using a Sony A1 camera and a 35mm Zeiss lens for the image. He said he believes the photo works because it conveys the “intensity of this process,” adding that “we barely see faces,” while the picture instead shows “a mass of people moving together” through a narrow passage.

He said the timing of Ramadan itself also shaped what the image captured. Correa said that although Ramadan includes celebration, “when people begin to approach the gate, they stop smiling.”

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