On October 4 we went to Hebron. It is a holy city for both Muslims and Jews because it is where Abraham is buried. Hebron lies about an hour directly south of Jerusalem. If there are major delays at the many check points, it can take much longer, especially for Palestinians. In and around Hebron there are 215 check points and other forms of restrictive barriers (according to the United Nations Office for the Co-ordination of Humanitarian Affairs) that impede the movement of Palestinians even when they need to go to Augusta Victoria Hospital in Jerusalem for cancer treatment or dialysis.
There are only two roads leading into Hebron. Palestinians are permitted to use only one of the roads; others may use either. A young man from Sweden who volunteers as an Ecumenical Accompanier met us at the entrance of the old city. One of the jobs of an EA is to walk to school with Palestinian kids so that they are less likely to be harrassed by the "illegal" Jewish settlers and the soldiers, or to ride with patients to Augusta Victoria Hospital to help expedite their passage through all the check points. He kept us away from where we might encounter groups of settlers who were out harrassing Palestinians and visitors like us who they considered to be a threat.
The Jewish settlers in Hebron are very conservative in their theology, and they are decidedly aggressive. They are convinced that the city is theirs, even though there had been little or no Jewish presence since time immemorial. The settlers have "illegally" occupied Palestinian land and houses, and the Israeli legal system turns a blind eye, even when they threaten and beat Palestinians. Some of the settlers have occupied buildings overlooking the Palestinian markets (suqs), and throw their waste, human and otherwise, onto the heads of the Palestinians in the marketplace. The Palestinians have erected large overhead mesh screens to catch the debris. There are more Israeli soldiers than there are settlers posted throughout the city, and the settlers themselves carry automatic rifles. Ironically the most serious outbreak of violence in the past 15 years was the massacre by one of the Jewish settlers of about 40 Palestinians at prayer in their mosque, and the Palestinians have suffered the most because of it. All told, Hebron is a microcosm of the plight of Palestinians throughout the West Bank and Gaza.
As we walked through the suq, protected by the steel mesh over our heads, we saw something that will stay with us for a long time. Stenciled on the side of a Palestinian building was a Star of David with the words "Gas the Palestinians". Isn't it ironic how, in some cases, the oppressed become the oppressors.
On the way home we had a blow-out just south of Bethlehem. Within minutes a patrol of 4 Israeli soldiers were on the scene, suspicious, guns at the ready. When they discerned that we were no threat, they helped us change the tire. A second patrol arrived and at one point there were 8 soldiers directing traffic and struggling with rusty wheel nuts. The ones operating the wheel wrench even laid down their guns on the road beside them. Maybe there is a message here--have more blow-outs on West Bank roads!
1 comment:
I don't know, does the note of one extremist really tell of the oppressive nature of the whole? Seems to me I remember people cautioning others not to condemn all of Palestine because of the acts of some extremists (even when that is the mandate of the government voted into an overwhelming majority). It would be the same mistake to throw that wide-reaching blanket the other direction. It's easy to have sympathy for people obviously suffering but important to remember that most people's suffering is anything but obvious and is more often than not expressed with aggression.
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