Young Israelis reject the military service - see why

Many young Israelis who decide not to go to the military service because of their beliefs are sent to jail. See why they made such decision. See what they wanna tell us.

New Profile is an Israeli organization that promotes demilitarization of Israel. They also help the young imprisoned conscienscious objectors.
To learn more about how the Israeli society is highly militarized and what the organization does, please visit: http://www.newprofile.org/english/

Mr. Netanyahu's speech - another "generous offer"

/Photo: One of the many Israeli colonies spread in the Palestinian Territory (West Bank). Next to it Palestinian boys riding a donkey. Currently there are around 400 000 settlers living in these isolated enclaves./

I carefully listened to Mr. Netanyahu’s speech, hoping for a change. Naïve me.
Most TV stations and analysts, to my surprise, pronounced this a breakthrough or a shift in the peace process. I wonder if we were listening to the same speech.

To me, Mr. Netanyahu's speech brought nothing new. Indeed he says he wants to reach out for peace and is ready to negotiate, these are very nice and promising words.
The conditions he establishes however, are clear to the people that are familiar with the facts on the ground. Firstly, he is talking about the Jewish state, while 20% of Israeli citizens are Palestinians or Israeli Arabs (depending who says it), it makes them second class citizens. Secondly, saying that the "refugee issue is to be resolved outside of Israel's borders", means taking no accountability whatsoever for the refugees' fate Israel (and of course the international community) is responsible for. And last but definitely not least, the topic of the Israeli settlers, which deserves another paragraph.

I have been living in Hebron and witnessed what occupation means and who the settlers are. And trust me they are anything but bridges to peace. Settler violence is known to all Palestinians living in the West Bank, of course Hebron being the special case. Mr. Netaniahu's saying settlers are "pioneers and people of principle" is actually true but the principle he is supporting here is taking all means to regain the "land God promised to them" as the settlers say themselves, which translates into expropriating public or private Palestinian land and intimidating Palestinians to move out with multiple methods from verbal harassment to stone throwing, olive tree burning, setting cars and houses on fire, shooting (which I all witnessed myself). This is combined with the impunity the settlers have and Palestinian defenselessness (over 90% of settler violence incidents are not punished). I could write pages about it. Forgive my bitterness but living in Hebron one almost can't believe a situation like this can be taking place. (Just to be fair, apart from these ideological settlers there is a whole lot of so called economical settlers who live in the West Bank only because they are encouraged by the state with cheaper rent and better living conditions.)

Netaniahu says settlements will stay there. How then a viable Palestinian State could exist with a net of settler only road infrastructure. An independent Palestinian state with this separation and Israeli colonies inside is just not feasible. This, to me, means occupation won’t end because the settlers, as it happens now, will need to be protected.

And lastly, in relation to Mr. Netanyahu's call for demilitarization of the Palestinian state, I wonder if the settlers will be desarmed as well. I honestly don't believe that will happen.

Settler kids throwing stones at us in Hebron

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e-bySD9nCYM

All I saw but told by a professional!

I know people can't be aware of every conflict on earth and study all of them in detail.
So here you have a resume of what you should know!
This is exactly the reality I and my fellow volunteers experienced in Palestine/Israel now.
Nothing is exagerrated.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tor75dMABi8

Only now...

It is only now, after almost two weeks after coming home, that I am able to sort out my photos from Hebron. The emotional load is still there but at least I can look at them and talk to people about my experience. Experience - this is the key word. And it is first-hand. Although for some even the I-was-there-and-saw thing is not convincing enough.

But I will continue doing my little steps. Showing. Telling. Asking questions. Discovering.
Also here on the blog: I will continue writing all these untold stories.
I do it for me. I will not solve the conflict. But I will be happier with myself.

Does it make sense?

After coming back and facing the people who do not have the experience I had I started to realize there is a big wall I wont easily brake. It is very frustrating to hear these pre-formulated sentences people repeat after the mainstream media.

Does it make sense to put energy in changing public opinion?

Double standards

We visit this Palestinian family every Saturday. This is when settlers usually attack - on their holy day of the Shabat. The house is being attacked a lot more than the neighboring houses and the family is wondering why. The reason might be that the father of the family owns a lot of land in the area and also the house is very big. It could be also a strategic point as it is located between the Kiryat Arba settlement and the Givat Ha'avot settlement.

Photo: A Palestinian house frequently attacked by settlers; In the upper part of the picture the houses of Kiryat Arba settlement can be seen.

What is interesting, the Israeli police station is just in a hundred meters away, and apart from many complains, nothing is done and settlers are never accounted for what they do. However if the Palestinians try to, God forbid, defend themselves they would be immediately arrested.
Now the only weapon the family has is a video camera, distributed by B'tzelem, an Israeli human rights organization, within a project called 'Shooting Back'. The one who mainly 'shoots' videos is a young girl. She says after so many attacks she is not afraid of the settlers anymore.

Photo: Givat Ha'avot settlement

Also on the Palestinian land, between the two settlements, a tent synagogue was built with a paved path between the settlements, like if the settlers could not pray elsewhere inside the settlements. Now the Palestinians cant even walk around it and when they did once, they were arrested.

If you have doubts about Gaza

'Phosphorus shells' hit Gaza UN school

John Ging, head of the United Nations Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA), describes the moments and aftermath of an Israeli strike on a UN school, designated as a shelter, in Beit Lahiya.

http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/interactive/2009/jan/21/gaza-israelandthepalestinians

Ahlan wa Sahlan

Ahlan wa Sahlan (welcome) - probably the most common expression I have heard here. You might even say it is overused but it shows how deeply hospitality is rooted in the Arabic culture. Polish people are also famous for their hospitality but comparing to the Palestinians, it is really nothing.

Maybe this is why it is so easy to feel here like at home. And maybe this precisely makes so many people come back to Palestine again and again....

Petting the donkey or seam zone watch

5.30 a.m. Susan and I are heading to the Agricultural Gate. I is supposed to be open at 6. The farmers already gathered and are waiting to be able to cross for a few hours to their land that they have been working on for generations. After the Separation Barrier was built that land is not theirs anymore and is located now in the so called Seam Zone (see explanations below). They need special permits to be able to access it. Even that is many times denied to them, the gate is open with a delay of sometimes even a few hours.


Photo: Waiting for the gate to be open. Farmers make fire to keep warm.

Photo: Soldiers open the gate with a delay


Photo: Gate is open. Now the permits will be carefully checked.

Photo: Permits that need to be shown. This time only few farmers are allowed to pass due to West Bank closure imposed because of Gaza war.





Some explanations (source UNOCHA):

• SEAM ZONE - the area that lies between the Barrier and the Green Line in the northern
  West Bank, which was declared closed by Israeli military order in 2003.
  Palestinians now require permits to either live in or access this area and
  passage is permitted only through designated gates in the Barrier.

• GREEN LINE - the 1949 Armistice Line, which serves as the internationally recognized
  boundary between Israel and the West Bank.

• SEPARATION BARRIER - a complex series of concrete walls, electronic fences, observation towers, trenches, patrol roads and razor wire constructed by Israel around and in the West Bank. Upon completion, the Barrier will isolate some 9.5% of the West
  Bank, including East Jerusalem, while physically connecting it to Israel. In
  July 2004, the International Court of Justice ruled that the route of the Barrier
  that lies in the occupied West Bank, including East Jerusalem—some 90% of
  the route—is illegal

Huwwara checkpoint: it would seem to be nothing

Photo: Palestinians waiting to be checked by the Israeli soldiers at the Huwwara checkpoint at the exit of the city of Nablus.

Huwwara is on of the 7 big checkpoints surrounding the city of Nablus. There is no other way in or out of the city than crossing them. If you work or study in Nablus and live in the outskirts, waiting in line sometimes for hours is your daily experience.

When you see Huwwara there is an inevitable association to industrial cattle corridors. It is particularly crowded on Thursday evenings and Sunday mornings when students go home for the weekend (Friday and Sutarday). Today it was rather a usual number of people and still it was quite an unpleasant experience. On my own, with a backpack, I suddenly found myself among a crowd of people squeezed between two metal barriers. Like cattle. Although many times I was told about it and shown pictures, to really understand one must go through it. But what for me was a one-time travel experience, for all these people it is daily life.


After crossing this checkpoint I felt like crying. When I reached the soldier, he briefly asked me where I am going and said "Have a nice day". So ironic, I thought. I will be honest with you, I have not been crying here even while hearing stories of people being shot and witnessing settlers attacking old people. But seeing this constant humiliation broke something in me. I had to hold up tears to hop on the litte yellow 'service' and continue my travel.

A young man sits next to me asks: -Have you seen this? What do you think?
Well, there is not much I can say. I try to express my disagreement with the situation and explain our work as a programme. He seems very depressed and says:
-You know you cannot do anything for us, don't you? I know that people in Europe have no idea about this and think we are the terrorists.
- "No, not all of them, some of them know.....".
Before getting off the bus he writes his email address on a little peace of paper and hands it to me.
-Please, write to me and tell me what your people said about it!

Dear all, lets give this man some hope, he is a lawyer and goes through Huwwara every single day, having to raise his shirt up to show he does not have explosives.
Feel free to leave your comments here or send them to my email, and I will be more than happy to forward them to him. Thank you.

Dear Obama

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EcGm-gxmxHw

Please watch this.

Gaza: just a stone throw away (by Karin Luedi)

No question - while our mind tells us that there are quite a few kilometres between us and Gaza, the traces of the war are clearly visible in Hebron. Hardly anyone of the people we talk to does not have family or friends living there, and even if they do not, they still suffer with the Gazans as if they were their own brothers and sisters. Students tell us how hard it was for them to concentrate on their exams for the last two weeks, and a few of them cannot keep back their tears. More often than not, I get the impression that the people we talk to try to keep up some of their previous lightness, just for us. There are moments, however, when we see people on the street, or even our closest contacts broken – the same ones who, during the violent settlers’ attacks just a few weeks ago, seemed so matchlessly strong and invulnerable. Helplessly, in the midst of discussing, we often fall silent, together with them. – Yesterday afternoon, a 15 year old boy was shot by IDF (Israeli Defence Forces) during a demonstration in Hebron against the war in Gaza. He had thrown stones (according to the media report), and he was standing next to one of our local contacts.

All of a sudden, Gaza has become just a stone’s throw away from us, and yesterday’s death toll from the war in Gaza has increased by one.

Photos: non-violent demonstration of teachers of Hebron against the war on Gaza

Tulkarem and two very special ladies

When I arrived in Tulkarem what stroke me is that it is so different from Hebron. Difficult to explain how.





Anyway, I was so warmly welcomed by my colleagues Susan and Ana and from the very first moment I was made very comfortable. Here I would like to stress how much I admire and appreciate them . Thinking of human rights activists you probably imagine crazy young people. Susan and Ana are at least my parents' age and you can tell that they really enjoy so much being here. I hope in a couple of years I will still have as much hope and strength as they do now.
Thank you!


Photo: Susan and her favourite steps in Tulkarem :)


Photo: Tulkarem Univ. Playing football in the shadow of the Wall.

On the road

Today I went to a placement visit - to see what my colleagues from EAPPI do in other locations. I chose Tulkarem because the problems people face here differ completely from the ones in Hebron.

Around noon I took a 'service' (little yellow van - means of public transportation) to Betlehem. In Betlehem, after the bus got full we left to Ramallah and finally in Ramallah I hopped on a 'service' to Tulkarm. As today is Friday most of the shops are closed and there is less traffic on the road.

Photo: Friday prayer in Hebron

We were luckily not stopped for longer at any checkpoint but had to take a longer route as there were some clashes around Qalandia checkpoint close to Ramallah.



There was news on the radio people on the bus were listening to. -There is a demonstration in Ramallah- they tell me. -What are they shouting- I ask. - Unity between Fatah and Hamas! The people of Gaza are precious to us!

I enjoy so much traveling on my own in the West Bank. I admire the views. I can practice my Arabic, observe the people and ask whatever questions might come to my mind. Somehow these little busses create an atmosphere of intimacy and people open up very easily to share their opinions and ideas on any subject. Some of the most interesting conversation I had, were on the bus.



Bust most of all, traveling with a 'service' inspires me a lot. Suddenly my mind is so clear and there are million topics and ideas I want to spread to the world. Maybe it is this feeling of freedom that traveling gives you. This feeling of freedom of movement that, in the bigger picture, has been taken away from the Palestinians.

To the Wall, may it Fall!

....as one of my friends always says when having a toast.....

Traveling through the West Bank you can see the Wall, Separation Barrier or whatever name you give it, every now and then. And it always leaves the same bitter impression. It has cut some people off from their relatives and friends, from their agricultural land but it has not killed yet creativity. All different kinds of writings and graffiti are the way for people to express their anger and disappointment.










But when traveling on the Israeli roads it is not so easy to see the wall. It may be covered with earth, decorated or look more like a sound screen. Not to disturb the view.

Just a reflection...individuality in the West Bank

We were talking with a friend in Ramallah about the culture and internationals that have to somehow fit in it.

It is difficult to respect the culture and at the same time live your own way, especially if you live in Hebron, which is one of the most conservative cities in oPt. He said that on the other hand people in Hebron seeing us can relfect on their individuality. As the relation with family is very strong it is difficult for young people to develop their individual ideas and put them forward, according to him.

No comment...

Morning in the Teacher's Room

6.50 a.m. We walk towards the checkpoint CP56 to see if we can get in the Tel Rumeida area where there is a Palestinian school located just opposite a Jewish settlement. Luckily the Israeli soldiers, after hesitating a while, let us in. That means we can accompany children to school (that are often harassed by settlers), which is one of our main tasks in Hebron. But I will talk about it some other time.

Today, as it is an examination period, teachers (all of them women) gathered in the Teacher's Room. A lot of things were going on here. Someone was pouring tea and coffee - always present in any kind of gathering, others where filling in the school logs, some other teachers were correcting children's exam papers. While minutes were passing the atmosphere in the room became more and more relaxed and conversations more dynamic.

All kind of topics were touched. Of course War on Gaza was the main thing, as it is on everyone's mind and lips right now. But then topics swapped like in a kaleidoscope. Some talked about advantages of breast feeding and peoples' awareness on it, some gossiping about new marriages, some complaining on men, some showing of new piece of clothes they recently bought. After all, women are women anywhere.

It felt so comfortable to be inside this messy and loud room. It was very warm in spite of the low temperature. The only thing I could wish for at that moment was to be a fluent Arabic speaker and get involved in the conversation.

Talking about non violence ...over a shisha

Issa (meaning Jesus BTW), a Palestinian peace activist is one of our local contact. His experience in non-violent initiatives and dedication to the cause are impressive. Here are some quotes:

"If we need an Intifada it should be a non-violence intifada. A change always has its price. People schuld go on the streets. If all people of Hebron go to the streets, there is no army to stop them. But what we need is non violent resistance. When people tell you they are tired ask them what they are tired from. "

"If you ask yourself : What am I doing here?, realize that your job here is very important. Telling small storries is what makes a change. It makes a huge difference if you tell it to your friends an family and maybe they will do the same.It is not the media story, you are part of it and no one can tell you it is not true if you lived it. One of the most important tools of non-violence is advocacy and increasing awareness.

"I keep telling my Israeli friends: people here don't hate Jews. But you just happen to have very bad ambassadors in Hebron - settlers that harass, shoot, occupy houses, close the streets for Palestinians. What do you expect the people that suffer to do, give them flowers?"

"Replying to arguments, Jewish people always go back to 2000 years ago, like if Bible was a land registry office"

A routine of being detained for nothing..

One of our tasks in Hebron is guiding tours. Today it was not a qiuite exceptional one of 80 bishops from the US. It is not an easy task to squeeze such a number of people in the narrow streets of the old city of Hebron and talk to them at the same time. Somehow we managed.

As the group was to visit the Ibrahimi Mosque that houses the Tomb of the Patrirchs, they had to go through the security check. That is usual, however one lady wanted to give a present to the Muslim Sheikh that was meeting the bishops inside the mosque. The police didn't want to agree (acording to him she could brake the vase and use it as a weapon). Suddenly one of our Palestinian friends was being detained as he was translating for the lady, trying to help. With no reason he was taken to a detention room to be searched. Inside a soldier took some notes and suggested it might be something related to a bomb.
This is a usual thing for the Palestinians unfortunately.
We refused to leave until they released him.

Projects that give hope

CINEMA JENIN

In Jenin a city known by the Israeli as the "nest of terrorists" and that faces many army incursions in the refugee camp adjacent to it, there are people that try to focus on the positive aspects. To help develop the society through art and education and give especially the children something to live for and be entertained with.

In front of the central Jenin bus station there is a cinema, everyone knows it ant it is even an orientation point, however it has been closed for 20 years now. This only cinema in the city was closed at the outsets of the first Intifada. The project Cinema Jenin hopes to bring it back to life.

http://www.cinemajenin.com/cj/index.php/home
(I especially recommend the trailers!!)




Photo: The director of "The Heart of Jenin" movie and local arquitects working on reopening the cinema



Photo: A boy from Jenin refugee camp holds an old cinema poster. As part of the project children from the refugee camp are having film making workshops and take part in renovating the cinema.



Photo: Old movie projectors that can still be used



Photo: Cinema tickets from 20 years ago. They will be saved to use them as the cinema will reopen in 2010.

Off to Jenin

Photo: the Separation Barrier with meaningful graffiti on it


Photo: The Separation Barrier seen on the way to Ramallah

It takes at least 4 hours to get to Jenin from Hebron. Depending on the number of checkpoints on the way, military orders and often mood of the soldiers. First I hop on a service (a van bus) to Ramallah and at the big Ramallah bus terminal I hop on the one that leaves to Jenin. The bus leaves when it is full. We are stopped at one so called 'flying check point' - they can appear anytime anywhere...The soldier is a Druze meaning that he speaks Arabic (the Druze are known to be the strictest ones). As they usually do, he takes IDs from the men only. After waiting for 30 minutes the driver asks him how long we would still wait.
- You have a problem?- the soldier says. He clearly wants to show he is the boss there and it depends all on him.



Photo: One of the many check points

On a service I am never bored. That is why I love to travel through the Palestinian territories. Views are enjoyable, territory division interesting and people entertaining. There is always someone to talk to. People often speak English and are happy to talk. Sometimes when they don't I manage with my Arabic, pretending I understand it all.... Anyway, that is how one learns:)

Palestinian territory is divided into A, B and C areas. For beginners it is difficult to know in which one you are in, but after some time here it gets more and more clear. One of the signs is that when you cross from Israeli controlled area to the Palestinian controlled area people immediately unfasten their seat belts. "Now you can take it off" they would tell me, "There is no Israeli police anymore". :)

...boys that fight in Gaza

Today we went to the check point 56 as everyday in the morning we do. The flag of the Givati brigade was not there anymore.
- What happened to the flag?- we asked one of the soldiers.
- They went to Gaza- he said.
So the nice 20 year old boys we were seeing everyday in there are in war now.
- Do you wanna go to Gaza?-we asked
- Yes, here it is boring. I want to fight like my friends.
- You want to kill?
- I don't want to kill, I want to defend my country.
- But, it is dangerous, you can die.
- I don't care. I have nothing to lose.

What's new in Gaza?

Well, yesterday Israel entered Gaza by land. So now it is being attacked from the three sides: land, see and air. In front of the Red Cross office in Hebron people gathered today to call for Palestinian unity and protest against the violence in Gaza, especially directed towards children. They had banners and talked to the media. Out of 517 victims, 107 are children. One fifth.











Maan News: Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert said on Sunday night that Israel would not allow a humanitarian crisis in the Gaza Strip claiming that his soldiers distinguish between Palestinian fighters and unarmed civilians. “The army fights resistance fighters and at the same time offers humanitarian aid to the population,” Olmert claimed.Well the distinguishing does not go to well. A lot of houses were bombed. Gaza is also one of the most densly populated regions in the world, picking a Hamas leader without killing the innocent seems a difficult task, and everyone is aware of that.

Hazem, one of the many Hebronites that has family in Gaza, told me yesterday his father's house was bombed. Fortunately he was not home at the moment, but now he has no house anymore and lives in his relatives house.

Hebron famous for its glass industry

Kefiyyeh factory - the only one in the West Bank

If you don't know about it you would never find it. But we knew and it was so worth it. The only Keffiyeh factory in the West Bank, with just 4 employees, produces 120 Keffiyes per day. In an uncountable variety of color combinations. So if you need to pick just one, it is a really tough decision:)

It is a family business and most probably we were one of the very few who ever visited it. People did not seem disturbed by our presence and continued to do their job just as they usually do.


Keffiyeh is a scarf traditionally used by Arab men to cover their heads. It is also a Palestinian national symbol. Now it is worn in many different ways and became part of fashion.

Al Arroub Refugee Camp - Part 2: living by hope

In the camp we visited two houses to show our presence, tell the people they are not completely forgotten and listen to their stories.

People we talked to still remember the exodus of 1948 which is referred to by Palestinians as Nakba: the Catastrophe. Although camps have now transformed into cities, mentally refugees' presence there is temporary. They live by hope that they would go back to their homes. They wish to die and be buried there. For some reason they still believe this dream would come true, even though they have been waiting for this to happen for over 60 years now.


Photo: Na'ma, who lived the 1948 exodus explains the young Palestinian second generation refugee how difficult it was.

The two ladies live in the house built in the 1948 by the UN. They live together to support each other. They are indirectly related as the sister of the one on the left was the first wife of the husband of the one on the right:) They were extremely happy that we paid them a visit and very talkative and open to tell us their story, asking us to come back. In these moments I really regret not to be a fluent Arabic speaker...

Al Arroub Refugee Camp - a 'temporary' city...

Al Arroub is a refugee camp just outside of Hebron (one of the 19 refugee camps in the West Bank). It was established in 1948 when its inhabitants were expelled from what is now Israel. These refugees come from 37 locations (among them Haifa and Ber Sheba), meaning that they are of different customs and traditions.

Photo: a graphitti with names of the 37 villages of origin of the Al Arroub camp's refugees.


Photo: Refugee houses dating to 1948


As the camp is restricted to one square km it is overpopulated. For over 9000 people (including 3000 children) that live in the camp, there is only:

• 1 UN clinic (with 1 doctor and 2 nurses)
  
• 2 schools run by UNRWA (1 for boys and 1 for girls) and 2 governmental schools
• 1 social worker
• There is no sewage network
  

Photo: One of the schools run by the United Nations

Children are especially vulnerable in the camp because of the difficult economic situation of families and daily violence they witness. As the camp is located in Area C (Israeli control) there are frequent clashes with the Israeli soldiers and children, as they spend most time in the streets, take part. To their stone throwing the Israeli army responds with tear gas and sound bombs, which is according to Nidal, one of the camp's inhabitants, clearly disproportional. As a result many children suffer from anxiety, depression, spelling problems, problems with adolescence.




In order to keep the children out of the streets a youth center was established. There is also a women's center in the camp with a library, a gym, kindergarten, workshops of health awareness and women rights. There is also an ngo for the handicapped (many we shot by the army or settlers). But still, it is a drop in the ocean of refugees' needs.

People we talked to still remember the exodus of 1948 which is referred to by Palestinians as Nakba: the Catastrophe. Although camps have now transformed into cities, mentally refugees' presence there is temporary. They live by hope that they would go back to their homes. They wish to die and be buried there. For some reason they still believe this dream would come true, even though they have been waiting for this to happen for over 60 years now.

The camp's steets are full of powerful wall paintings commemorating the Nakba and the refugee fate.

Handala - a symbol of Palestinian resisitance. It was drawn by Naji Al-Ali who said: “His name is Handala and he has promised the people that he will remain true to himself. I drew him as a child who is not beautiful; his hair is like the hair of a hedgehog who uses his thorns as a weapon. Handala is not a fat, happy, relaxed, or pampered child. He is barefooted like the refugee camp children, and he is an icon that protects me from making mistakes. Even though he is rough, he smells of amber. His hands are clasped behind his back as a sign of rejection at a time when solutions are presented to us the American way."

Key is the main symbol of Palestinian refugees. It represents wtheir will of going back to their homes. Some of them do still have the keys to their previous houses.

No blood for injured Gazans

Today I spoke to some young people who tried to donate blood in one of Hebron hospitals for the Gaza victims. According to them there were around 400 volunteers. However they were denied giving blood, as it is useless due to Israeli blockade on its transport to Gaza.

More interesting articles on Gaza: reading highly recommended

• Why would Israel bomb a university?: http://www.maannews.net/en/index.php?opr=ShowDetails&ID=34411
  
• UN statement: http://www.maannews.net/en/index.php?opr=ShowDetails&ID=34423
  
• Our boys, just following orders, didn't distinguish between Hamasniks and children, traffic cops and gunmen: http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/spages/1051317.html
• My article in Polish: http://www.arabia.pl/content/view/292107/1/
  

Mourning is not staying at home

Students from the Hebron University marched through the city protesting against the Israeli violence in Gaza. They lifted banners and slogans calling on the world to break the silence and call for an end to the tragedy in Gaza. Many students carried black flags to mark the mourning period for the now over 300 dead. /Mann/

“Mourning is not staying at home and keeping the silence, but touring the streets, lifting our banners high and shouting to the world that we condemn Israeli practices, “said Head of the Student Council Muhannad Amro. /Maan/

When student reached Bab Az-Zawiya, it transformed into clashes with Israeli soldiers. Some demonstrators threw stones and soldiers responded with shooting teargas and opening fire. 9 students were injures.

Another Nakba? Now 363 killed, 1700 injured by Israeli air stike in Gaza; at least 62 are women and children according to UN

/photo: Palestinians in the center of Hebron reading news from Gaza/

Articles related to Israeli air strike on Gaza:
http://www.maannews.net/en/index.php?opr=ShowDetails&ID=34376 (Hebron University students demonstration to mourn over 300 dead in Gaza)
http://www.maannews.net/en/index.php?opr=ShowDetails&ID=34387 (Palestinian Authority statement on Gaza)
http://www.maannews.net/en/index.php?opr=ShowDetails&ID=34375 (Who died in Gaza)

How should I put it....

With so many things going on and so many people I have talked to in the last two days it is difficult to gather thoughts. Time to digest information is needed. People killed in Gaza, Palestinians protesting, Israelis saying that it was the only way... Images seen are so many and so contradictory. This is the Middle East, this is the Israeli-Palestinian conflict or the Occupation , whatever you call it.

Israel air strikes on Gaza - eye for an eye?

Today Israel attacked Gaza, in response to Hamas firing more and more Qassam missiles to Israel. 205 people are already dead and more that 320 are severely injured so far. All throughout the West Bank have spread demonstrations against the Israeli attack on Gaza. The one in Hebron escalated as it tends to happen: some youth started throwing stones and Israeli army used teargas and closed the shops in the center of the city (Bab Az-Zawiyya). According to Abed, one of our friends that owns a shop in Bab Az-Zawiyya, the teargas used today was much stronger as people started fainting. Ambulances were going back and forth according to witnesses.

I just came back from my days off in Tel Aviv and it was so difficult to combine and accept the two realities at the same time. After seeing the pictures from Gaza, the simple and maybe naive question comes through my mind: how do the people that make the decision to hit Gaza knowing that mostly the innocent civilians will die are able to sleep at night?

Children and old people died, how can it be justified? It definitely won't teach Hamas a lesson and people will only get angry.

Spanish folk concert in front of the checkpoint

Today a delegation of 190 Spanish politicians, peace activists, media and tourists learned that they were not allowed to get in to the Palestinian Qurtoba School where they were to perform activities for children. The aim of the visit was to have a concert and art workshops for school children that are often traumatized and face settler violence. As the visitors were denied access, like it has been happening to all internationals for 2 months now, the school children came to meet them outside the check point .

A folk band of Spanish musicians from Galicia started playing, people were clapping and waving their hands. Children were singing, some were dancing. Cheezy as it may seem, for these people this was a big moment. "I am so happy. This is really special. I will write about it in my diary", said to me Ishraq, one of the schoolgirls.

In response soldiers mobilized and gathered on top on the neighboring building pointing their M16 at us. But nobody really cared.

Then, as planned there was an art workshop for children, they were drawing their ideas of peace on a huge sheet of paper on the floor. It was all very symbolic. It was also quite an achievement: a real non violent action that showed sincere and deep-from-the-heart solidarity with Palestinians and attracted the media to the movement restriction problem in Hebron (there were a lot of media on the spot).

Tell Rumeida neighborhood has been closed after the 2nd intifada in 2000. What used to be once the main street of Hebron seems now a ghost city. Shops has been closed by military order. Only residents are allowed in. Palestinian are not allowed to drive on the streets, on some they are not allowed to walk. Israeli settlers that live inside Tel Rumeida often attack the Palestinian families, especially the children. Israeli soldiers and police do little to protect them (soldiers' task is to protect the settlers). That is why international presence there is very important: we accompany children to school and document settler violence.

visit to Akka - a Palestinian city in Israel

Akka is an ancient harbour city with a charming souq. Famous for its fish. It is a Palestinian city inside Israel. Most of inhabitants are Arabs with Israeli citizenship. Still it preserved it culture, Arabic is the main language and shisha bars are everywhere.

Nazarath and Palestinian Christians

New Profile - is being a pacifist in Israel possible?

The other side of the coin - meeting with Israeli students

Yad Vashem Museum.

Bob the Settler

As part of the so called Israeli Exposure Week we had an opportunity to visit Efrat, a Jewish settlement, and talk to its PR Person, Robert Lang. The meeting provoked lots of emotions as settlements are a big obstacle for peace and we as observers face settler violence towards Palestinians and international peace activists especially in Hebron.

For those who don't know, settlements are Jewish communities inside the West Bank or in other words in the oPt (occupied Palestinian territories). They are illegal under international law (IV Geneva Convention). Additionally 40% of settlements are built on private Palestinian land, meaning that they are also illegal under Israeli law. Israeli government however in majority of cases gives them green light. Robert Lang however disagrees with international law saying that "United Nations is not friendly to Israel". He also says: "Settlements are not obstacles for peace, they are bridges to peace because peace is living next to each other". Well, this is not what we see in our experience: roads only for settlers, settlers stealing Palestinian land, settler attacks on Palestinians...

Update:

"21 December 2008 / 1800H, Israeli settlers from Efrata settlement uprooted approximately 150 fruitful trees belonging to Palestinians from Artas village, south of Bethlehem. "

Crossing to the other side of the fence: Kiryat Arba

Judean Desert under Full Moon

Imagine immense moon-like space, silence and in addition to that full moon being the closest to Earth in 15 years. A hike in the desert is an unforgettable experience. And a good way of coping with emotions and confusion of living in the West Bank.

Milena (Switzerland, member of the EAPPI programme) and her husband Yarif were our guides as they spend their weekends in the desert very often. While finding a place to stay for the night and making fire I was thinking of people in biblical times doing probably the same. The dinner we had there was a real feast: aubergine, tomatoes, onions, sweet potatoes - everything roasted in fire and served with thina (sesame sauce). And the best spice tea ever prepared by Yarif: an infusion of cinnamon, cloves, nutmeg, ginger, cardamon with a splash of milk. In moments like this I ask myself why I ever eats processed food. Milena's dog, Luna, was keeping a watch all the time. During the night I was freezing in my unprofessional sleeping-bag but in the morning sun was quickly up to warm me up - it's all part of the desert experience.

The following day we did a few hour hike until we reached the Dead Sea (400 m below see level). Knowing that we were in the lowest point on the surface of the Earth on dry land was quite incredible. Dead See is in reality a hypersaline lake - the concentration of salt is so high that big crystals of salt form on its surface and no animals can flourish which explains its name.

Time to celebrate

A few days ago Hebron was paralyzed by the events related to the evacuation of the Occupied House. That was almost the only thing people in the streets talked about. Today Eid Al-Adha started and the city seems to be calm and quiet. It is one of the most important Muslim festivities that commemorates Abraham challenged by God to kill his son Ishmael and finally according to God's will asked to sacrifice a lamb. This story is common to all three monotheistic religions (although the Bible mentions Izaak instead of Ishmael). So why not celebrate!

People on the streets are relaxed and elegant, shops mostly closed. The tradition is to visit families, and as Palestinian extended families tend to be big and family relations important, some people end up visiting 30 families in one day. Eid Al-Adha is celebrated for a few days and the main dish is, of course, a lamb.

We had a lamb stuffed with rice and nuts at our landlords' and, similarly to Polish Xmas, there is so much food and people are so encouraging to make one eat more and more, that afterwards one can hardly move.

Sahteen! (Bon apetite)

Molotov coctails in Susya

On Friday as usually we went to the tent village of Susya. As the night before some of the tents were attacked by the Jewish settlers that tried to put the tents on fire throwing Molotov cocktails (we found remains of five), we were prepared for the worst of the cases. Thus to protect us and the village we took shifts on watch outs all night. Fortunately it was calm and quiet, however the Susyans were prepared for the attack. In the morning we visited the tents affected the night before. An old lady - Sara- lives there. The police never came saying they were too busy with the events in Hebron. The Israeli settlement (also called Susya) lies in a close proximity to the original Susya tent village. The village was destroyed several times by military orders but people always rebuilt their caves and tents.

Evacuation of the Occupied House

Yesterday the IDF forces did what we all were waiting for - the evacuation of the Beit HaSchalom (House of Peace) as Israelies call it and the Occupied House or Ar-Rajabi House as it is known by the Palestinians. Settler violence in response escalated and many Palestinian families were attacked, housess burned. As a result people were injured and wounded, apparently the settlers used guns, army reacted by shooting teargas and sound granades.

Hovewer this is definitely not finished. Settlers in many sites of West Bank take revenge. We are just heading to Susya, where settlers put fire on a tent village. Additionally tomorrow is Shabbat so settlers have a lot of time and energy to take action.

The frustrating thing yesterday was that the people affected are people we personally know, and the fact that we could not do much for them except calling Red Cross, TIPH, UNOCHA.

Press articles:
http://haaretz.com/hasen/spages/1043795.html
http://www.maannews.net/en/index.php?opr=ShowDetails&ID=33709
http://haaretz.com/hasen/spages/1043795.html

When your house is being destroyed...

As we were sitting at Nawwal's (our local contact) shop in the Old Souq and drinking tea, the settlers broke into the Al-Uwiwi family house just next door and turned it upside down. Blocks of concrete, windows, chairs -the whole household- came down from the roof accompanied by a frightening noise. People were scared, children crying. A Palestinian boy started throwing stones up towards the settlers. - Hallas (stop it) -we demanded, knowing it can only make the situation escalate. - This is his house being destroyed. How can you expect him to stop - Nawwal explained.

At the same time 250 settlers were being evacuated from the Occupied House. The Al-Uwiwi family house destruction was one of the many brutal attacks on Palestinians as revenge for the Occupied House evacuation, a house called by Jewish settlers Beit HaShalom (The House of Peace).

Different faces of reality. Settler attack on 29 Nov

On November 29 there was a big incident in Wadi al-Hussein area of Hebron and we happened to be eye witnesses, as we had planned to visit families in the area around the time the settlers’ attack started. More than 150 settlers from the Occupied House and Kiryat Arba attacked the Abu Seifen’s house, as well as a few other houses on their way to that house. About 30 Palestinian cars were damaged. Until we saw stones being thrown at us from the Occupied House we did not realize we could be targeted as well. We heard a lot of shooting that, as we discovered later (and we could even prove that on the footage of the attack), was mostly coming from the soldiers and aimed into the air, trying to make the settlers move away from the house after the attack. According to one eye-witness of the family, there were also a few armed settlers.

The settlers usually “get active” on Shabbat, since it is their day off, however, this time it was different, as Palestinians living in the area say. The whole event seems to have been planned, as the night before, the fence dividing the Kiryat Arba settlement and the valley was cut in preparation. Also, according the those Palestinians, the amount of police and army people was more than usual, and so was the number of settlers taking part in the attack.

One of the international observers, trying to understand the motives of the settler invasion asked Issa - a B'Tselem activist who got injured trying to get footage of the incident- for the reason of settlers’ behavior.

"You want to know why they do it? First of all we are Palestinians, and secondly, God gave them this land”, was the reply.

"Were the Palestinians throwing stones?”

"Of course they were.”

"So settlers and Palestinians were hurling stones at each other!”

"Oh no. Not at each other. If someone throws stones at you and your house, you have a right to defend yourself. That makes a big difference.”

In the evening, one of us called a TV station trying to convince them that what has happened on that day was an “interesting” piece of news, worthwhile to be covered. “Were there people killed?” was the question of the person from the TV station. “No”, was the reply. “Hmm, ok, than we will see….”

So this is what happens. Palestinian houses are attacked by a mass of settlers and nobody does anything. None of the settlers were arrested. Already by tomorrow, most people who heard about the incident will forget it and the story will repeat itself as it has been repeating itself for several years now. Families from Wadi Al-Hussein will continue to live in fear, asking the Palestinian Authority for the last three years in vain to at least get a kind of roof protection above their house, and Palestinian kids will be afraid to walk on the streets while coming back from school.- “We don’t need any money from the Palestinian Authority, all we need is for them to feel with us”, one of the affected persons said.

Confusion

There is a saying among journalists about the Middle East conflict. They say that if you are there a day you can wright a big report, if you are there a week you can write a short article and if you stay a month you cannot write anything.
This is so true and that is how me and many of my colleagues feel right now.

Why a blog?

Dear Friends. After three weeks in Hebron there are so many stories to tell and images to show. A blog is the easiest way to share a little part of my experience with you all, as simple as that. It is also part of my advocacy work: to show you what I see. Hope you enjoy...