Beach time

Getting sunburnt in Haifa

Apparently, the colour of my feet is getting close to black. It is not that odd though, because in addition to my face and hands, it is the only place upon which the sun can always shine. Living in the West Bank equals long sleeves and trousers, even when it's scorching hot.

But I've been spending some time on the beach. A few days in Jaffa with a couple of my team mates in May, and now some days in Haifa during Israeli Exposure Week. Unfortunately, there is a jellyfish invasion at the moment which has made it impossible to swim in the sea. Rumour has it they are Egyptian...

Jean-Marie - film noir cool

I must admit though, the best thing about days off is that I can rip off my West Bank clothes and wear haram outfits all day long... Gotta love it!

Drinking hot (!) sangria in Jaffa

Ya Mohannad!

If I told you this guy was Turkish, you would frown and tell me "No, he's gotta be a 'stekare'!" (a priveleged Swede from Stockholm with slick hair and preppy clothes who hangs out at Stureplan with HRH princess Madeleine). But no, this Turkish actor, named Kivanç Tatlitug, is the star du jour in Palestine as the male lead in the Turkish soap "Noor".

He plays Mohannad, husband of fashion designer Noor. The series is a huge success in the Arab world. I have watched a couple of episodes, and I understand why it's easy to get intrigued. Let me just give you a recap of two and a half episodes:

Noor is kidnapped, Noor kills the kidnapper after he tries to rape her, Noor is imprisoned and finds that she's pregnant, Noor is released, she gives birth, she has a disagreement with Mohannad and separates from him, they are both involved in a car accident and reconcile.

I think "Days of our lives" has something to learn with regards to the pace of the storyline. As far as I know, Noor and Mohannad were happy in yesterday's episode.

Extremely popular (and influental?)
Everybody watches it. Everybody talks about it. Even grown men are glued to the TV-screen. Studies on the phenomenon of "Noor" shows that the tv-series popularity stems in part from it being the only escape from reality for those who have but the world of television to resort to. Its lavish interior sets and heavy consumption of hair products definitely helps to up the glam factor. But when I ask the average Palestinian woman or girl why she likes the show, she gets a dreamy look and just goes: "Ya (oh) Mohannad!".

Regardless, the fact remains that Noor and Mohannad are on everybody's lips. Hence, it's possible to find their faces on any merchandise you can imagine. You can even buy Noor and Mohannad crisps...

Apparently, the series has had another effect apart from the purely commercial boost. People keep telling me all these stories about couples who have divorced because the women have started to act like the independent Noor. Maybe we have a femenist revolution on our hands, courtesy of a Turkish soap opera?

Sderot

I've been to the Israeli town of Sderot. Sderot is the most common target of Qassam rockets from Gaza. I was told that the citizens feel neglected and marginalized and think that the Israeli government could do more to protect them. Ironically, Sderot is also the home to many Palestinian collaborators from Gaza whom Israel has resettled inside her own borders.

Unfortunately, I don't have too much to say about the visit. After meeting Noam, the director of Sderot Media Centre - a man who consistently referred to the everyone in Gaza as 'terrorists' and painted a very vivid black and white picture of the conflict - nothing I was told and shown really made the impression it could have if Noam's language had been a bit more subdued. Such flaming introductions might appeal to some, but it had the opposite effect on a person who has been living in the West Bank for the past five months.

Dear Noam, I came to Sderot wanting to hear about the Israelis who are living in the line of fire. I wanted to know your concerns and thoughts, your view on the situation. What I did not want was a lecture on how evil the people in Gaza are. Sorry, Noam, but you shot yourself in the foot.

I do not want to undermine the fear with which the people of Sderot are living. I can see that it is unbearable to live in such a situation - worrying about your family and your home. At the same time I couldn't help thinking about the others who are living with similar kinds of fears and in much worse conditions - only a kilometre or so away. Fenced in and without the bomb shelters that the people in Sderot are provided.

The cost of resistance

Tamaam in her tent after the attack

Susiya is a small community consisting of about 20 families. Traditionally, the people of Susiya have been cave dwellers, but since the Israeli army demolished their caves and expelled them from their original site, they have been living in tents. Situated right next to their current location is an Israeli settlement, also called Susiya. The settlers living here are driven by religious and ideological motives, making them a constant threat to the surrounding communities. This settlement and all the other settlements in the West Bank are considered illegal under international law.

It's Sunday afternoon in Susiya. Imran and his wife Rabiha are out grazing their sheep together with Imran's aunt Tamaam and her husband Khalil. They move a couple of hundred meters away from the tents that make up their little community, around a bend and out of sight to the others. Suddenly, six masked young men with wooden bats and clubs come storming up towards them.

It is over quite quickly. 57-year old Tamaam is lying unconscious on the ground after having been hit and kicked in the head, face and torso. Her right arm and jawbone is broken. Khalil is bleeding from the head. Imran and Rabiha are badly bruised after several heavy blows.

This incident is not uncommon in the South Hebron Hills. Settler attacks occur weekly. It is the settlers' attempt to drive the Palestinians out of the area. Our EAPPI team met Tamaam and Imran a few days after the attack in their tents. They told us what had happened: Two settlers had come up to them before the attack and told them to leave within ten minutes. They refused. After all, the land belongs to the family. The price of resistance – broken bones.

What is uncommon is that it was filmed by a family member and published worldwide. Since January 2007, the Israeli human rights organisation, B'Tselem, has distributed 100 cameras to families in Palestine, of which 30 are given out in the Hebron area. The so-called 'Shooting Back' project aims to expose human rights violations and to give Palestinians in particularly vulnerable circumstances an opportunity to document violence and humiliation.

Whether this video material will lead to any kind of prosecution of the attackers is uncertain. Another Israeli human rights organisation, Yesh Din, has documented that such attacks are increasing and happening on almost a daily basis. In 2005, 90 percent of the 299 complaints were closed, whilst another 5 percent were lost and never investigated. The same year, Israeli organisations received 599 complaints. I have personally witnessed several incidents that have never been reported.

I see the unrest and fear that this kind of life instigates in the children living close to settlements. They jump at sounds, hide behind their parents when strangers arrive (quite unlike other Palestinian children), and they have nightmares. Such invisible wounds might be more difficult to heal than the physical ones that Imran, Rabiha, Khalil and Tamaam suffered.

The EAPPI Hebron team provides protective presence in Susiya and other communites in the South Hebron Hills. We stay with families overnight, especially around Shabbat (Saturdays) and on Jewish holidays, when the settlers tend to be most active.

Any Palestinian's story

Tuesday, May 27th, at 2.45am. All is quiet at Nayef Hashlamoun's home. He and his family - his wife and their five children, ranging in ages from 12 to 20 years in age - are fast asleep. All of a sudden the whole family wakes up, they hear noises, they hear people rattling their front gate, they hear shouting and then loud hard knocking noises at their front door. Nayef gets up, turns on the lights and opens the front door, the frightened family right behind him. Eight Israeli soldiers are standing on the porch of his house, pointing a gun at him. They tell him they want to see his ID.

Random interrogation
Then Firas, the oldest son, is taken out of the house. Firas, who is 18 years old, is not allowed to put any shoes or other extra clothing on. He is ordered to give his mobile phone number and told to turn himself in to the Israeli Intelligence office for interrogation by 9am the next morning. Firas has an exam at Hebron University at that time, so Firas' father Nayef asks the commander to postpone the appointment until the afternoon. The Israeli officer refuses, after which he leaves with his soldiers.

The morning comes and Nayef and his son Firas goes to the appointment in Kfar Etzion. Firas has his picture taken. He is also asked if he is involved in any kind of political activities. Since that is not the case, he is allowed to leave the place two hours after getting there. The University gives him the chance to do his exam two days later, but still stressed from the incident, Firas fails it.

- My house and home have always been open to people from many different countries and religions. If the Israeli authorities behave like this with us, how do they then behave to other Palestinians?, he says relieved, yet also upset.

A Second Bad Surprise
Besides being a Reuters Press Agency senior-employee, Nayef has also been involved in peace activism for more than twenty years. In 1988, he founded the Al-Watan Center in Hebron. He is still the director of this organization, which provides workshops and training in civic education, conflict resolution and non-violence. To attend seminars about non-violent action, Nayef has travelled abroad many times, especially to the United States.

This spring Nayef received a scholarship to participate in a peace building program from June 2nd to June 20th at the American University in Washington DC (USA) and also in the summer program at the Fletcher School in Boston (USA) the last week of June. His son Firas, who has been involved in non-violent peace activism since he was a young boy, was invited to join his father Nayef. Yet a second bad surprise for Nayef and his family occurred after the military raid: the Israeli military authority did not give him the permission to go to Jerusalem, where he had an appointment at the American Consulate on May 28th to get a visa.

- It is the first time ever that I am not allowed to leave the West Bank. I have travelled many times and never had any problem of this kind. The Israeli administration justify their decision with their standard answer - "security reasons", he says.

No access to Jerusalem
Nayef is 54 years old, and he never had any kind of security or criminal problems. He never went to jail, and he has worked with non-violent peace activism for over twenty years. For him, all of this is starting to sound like some bad joke. Yet it is not. Nayef and his son reapplied for the permit to visit the American Consulate in Jerusalem on June 10th. Once again their permit request was denied. So the plane left without Nayef and his son Firas to Washington DC (USA) on the 1st of June. For Firas it would have been his first time abroad.

Since 1993, the Israeli authorities have introduced a permit regime that restricts access for Palestinians who hold West Bank IDs to East Jerusalem. With the outbreak of the second Intifada in 2000, a series of military checkpoints and obstacles have been set up to enforce this permit system. The construction of the Barrier has made the access even more difficult. Permits are only issued for a specific reason i.e. to work, to study, for family reunification or a certain social event. Yet according to the United Nations' Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, the permit applications are often refused on the basis of security, without any further explanation.

What happened to Nayef Hashlamoun (and his family last week) is his personal story, yet it is far from unique. His story is one which can be heard over and over again all over Palestine.

This article was written by John Jamal Pellaux. Merci beaucoup, ya habibi!

Denied access. Again.

A settler boy tries to block Yehuda's filming

Breaking the Silence tried to enter the city again today. Unsuccessfully. About 40 settlers blocked the bus with cars, prams and children. Some of the women sat down in front of it and started reading the Torah, whilst other men were walking around with their cameras and their guns trying to intimidate the tour group. The police and army wandered around aimlessly like confused chickens.

Female settlers reading the Torah in front of the bus

My team and I were waiting for the bus to enter Hebron so we could join the tour, as we were unable to finish it the last time we tried. Quite a few EAs from other placements were on the bus this time, we could see them peering out through the bus windows, looking bemused.

A young settler had travelled from Jerusalem with the sole purpose of stopping the bus from entering Hebron. He came over and told us that we could never understand the settlers since we are not Jewish. Then he expressed a wish to hang us from the trees in the nearby field. We politely pointed out that the field, and consequently the trees, belonged to a Palestinian aquaintance of ours. A little annoyed by our resistance to be willingly executed, he exclaimed "Go to China! There they shoot people like you." The young man seemed rather fond of China and a little disappointed with Israel. "Israel is crazy," he insisted, "they don't shoot you Nazis."

A young settler from Jerusalem amuses Jean-Marie and Johannes

After two hours of back and forth between Yehuda and the police (very similar to the last display), the bus turned around and once again went to the South Hebron Hills with three police cars on its tail. We could only wave to our colleagues and smile with a shrug of surrender. Maybe next time.

Last day of school

Last day of school. Singing, dancing, memory books, gifts, laughter, tears... From today and for about two and a half months, the kids won't be going to school. Some tell us they will study on their own, a very select few plan to go abroad, but most say they will be bored. There are plans to arrange a summer camp at the school in July, but the funding from the Palestinian Authority seems uncertain.

Summer holiday at the Cordoba school means that our team will have more freedom to pursue other activities in the Hebron governate. That, I'm looking forward to...

Keep them silent

Yehuda Shaul being filmed by settlers Anat Cohen and Ofer in front of the Gutnick Centre

It is surprising how much ruckus one Israeli can create in Hebron city centre just by his mere presence. Yehuda Shaul, one of the founders of Breaking the Silence – a group of former Israeli soldiers – was in Hebron to give a tour of the city where he was formerly stationed as a commander.

Breaking the Silence reveals some of the things that soldiers have to do whilst serving in the IDF, like terrorizing families at night, harassing Palestinians at checkpoints and torturing detainees, often without any legitimate reason. These revelations make the group very unpopular among certain Israeli factions. As you can imagine, the Hebron settlers aren't their biggest fans.

The tour bus was stopped in front of the Gutnick Centre - the settlers' local shop and information centre - where the some infamous settlers, flanked by Israeli police, were waiting for us. The bus wanted to keep moving down Shuhada street - a street that is closed to Palestinian vehicles, but in practice completely closed for any Palestinian movement at all - into the Palestinian neighbourhood of Tel Rumeida.

The police told us to all get off the bus. Stepping out, Yehuda, pulled out a video camera and started filming the settlers. Simultaneously, the settlers produced several video cameras themselves and were filming Yehuda filming them. It was very bizarre. All the while, Jewish songs were blasted from the loudspeakers of the Gutnick Centre.

A strange game, which both parties seemed to know way too well, ensued. Yehuda was discussing with the police officers asking them if they had a legal reason to prevent him from moving on with the tour. At first, the police tried to use common reasoning with the "c'mon, don't be difficult. we're on the same side" kind of arguments. Noticing that this failed, the police tried to appeal to Yehuda's concern for the tour group, claiming that they would be unable to ensure our safety if we continued. Finally after an hour or two, the police had bought enough time to be able to produce a paper declaring the area a closed military zone.

In principle, that means that no civilians are allowed to be in such an area, and consequently, we were banned from entering the zone. However, settlers kept walking uninterrupted up and down Shuhada Street to and from their settlements.

Breaking the Silence has been denied access for several weeks. They had to turn around this week too. But they will be back next Friday to try again, all the while fighting their case in the Israeli court system.

The tour eventually ended up in the South Hebron Hills, police in tail. A little disappointing for us who already know the area, but at least Jean-Marie got to fly a plastic bag kite and I got to play with the cutest, most emaciated kitten I've ever beheld.

Apparently, many photos and video clips of internationals and israeli peace activists end up on the Hebron settlers' website together with all the other documentation on 'nazi-leftists' (that's not an expression to cover all political affiliations, it's an actual word that they use, the clever (oxy)morons sorry got carried away...).