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From Middletown to the Middle East

~ Reflections on travel and teaching

From Middletown to the Middle East

Tag Archives: Israeli occupation

First Impressions of Hebron

15 Saturday Oct 2011

Posted by tgilheany in Uncategorized

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Hebron, Israeli occupation, settlers

There are many websites giving the political and religious background to Hebron. Suffice it to say: about 500 Israeli settlers living in the middle of an old Palestinian city, near sites both Jews and Muslims believe are sacred.

First, I was somewhat surprised to encounter a real, live Palestinian city, which like Bethlehem or East Jerusalem, has an outskirts of tire shops, etc. along the entrance road, a new city, and an old city. In the new city cars jam the streets and the concrete four to eight story buildings hold shops selling cell phones, clothes and food. The police and soldiers one sees, like in Ramallah or Bethlehem, are Palestinian Authority.

My surprise came because I had read about how empty, divided and depressing Hebron was. I was interested to find that this description, and it is completely accurate, refers to a specific part of the city – the old city and several major streets near it. As I saw it today Hebron (or al-Khalil in Arabic) really exists in three forms: the new city described above, much of the old city, and a closed neighborhood that used to be a major market street.

EAPPI International Observers

The old city lives a kind of half-life. I walked through most of the old city without crossing an Israeli checkpoint, though video cameras, guard towers and pairs of soldiers at street corners were common. The old city also now has earned the distinction of being the place I first encountered a genuine combat patrol – i.e. seven soldiers, spaced apart, on either side of the street, constantly sweeping their eyes in all directions. They were followed by two women with the World Council of Churches Ecumenical Accompaniment Programme in Palestine and Israel (international observers always wisely wear identifying clothing).

Settler building over shuttered shops

All Israeli soldiers I saw today in Hebron wore their helmets. For context, so far in a month of visiting the Old City of Jerusalem I cannot recall seeing an Israeli soldier wearing his helmet. Some shops were open, though the closer we got to the Ibrahimi Mosque more and more were closed. Some areas had metal gratings across the top of the street, because settlers living above, I was told, throw garbage down on the Palestinians in the street.

Sealed off street

Near the mosque we went through a checkpoint like those along the security fence / wall – turnstiles with the guard out of sight, a green and red light to signal when you can go through, and then a metal detector. (You only see the soldiers after this procedure.) We then emerged out of the old city and into a ghost town. This is what I had read about. Some people still live there – we saw kids in windows, and the occasional Palestinian walking from one point to another. But these are large streets with three story buildings, major intersections and a large parking lot – all with no cars, every shop shuttered, and checkpoints at every entrance. I would guess it is about three blocks wide and very long, stretching up to another checkpoint.

Happy settlers

As I was passing back through the checkpoint I saw perhaps the strangest sight I have yet come across in this region – a nicely, casually dressed observant Jewish family came walking around a corner. My neighborhood in West Jerusalem, of course, is full of families dressed this way. I was prepared to see angry settlers with guns, but this happy family walking down this post-apocalyptic wasteland of a street was absolutely bizarre.

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Politicized academics

11 Sunday Sep 2011

Posted by tgilheany in Fulbright project

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archeology, City of David, Israeli culture, Israeli occupation, Silwan

Neighborhood sign for Silwan, OK. Neighborhood sign for City of David, though? It's an archeological site, not a neighborhood, right?

If you come to Jerusalem, I strongly encourage you to take a tour of the City of David archeological site with the group Emek Shaveh. They offer a tour with a professional archeologist called “Archeology in the shadow of the conflict.” The site is in the middle of a poor Palestinian neighborhood called Silwan. One could imagine a way of handling this dig and its presentation with dignity and fairness. The interpretation could be more qualified, less certain that a “big building in  10th – 8TH Century BCE ancient Jerusalem” equals “David’s palace.” The progress of the site could be regularly shared with the residents of Silwan. Benefits like parking and concessions could also be shared with the neighborhood. The decision to dig on more land could go through a neutral committee and residents could be recompensed. The funding and control of the park could remain completely in the hands of the parks department, and not private groups with other agendas (the group Elad that runs the site in a public/private partnership is also involved in encouraging Israeli Jews to move to Palestinian neighborhoods, a process call “Judaization.”)

Settlers' house in Silwan, with constantly manned guardpost, paid for by the Israeli government.

One of the many playgrounds we have enjoyed

Unfortunately, none of these steps are currently being taken. It is emotionally jarring to go from West Jerusalem to East Jerusalem. In West Jerusalem I love the peace of Shabbat, hearing the shofar in this month before Rosh Hashanah, and seeing people reading religious commentary on the bus. I love the many playgrounds (often given by Americans), the friendliness towards children, and the café culture.I appreciate the concern for the elderly, seeing a soldier pop out of her seat for someone with a cane – though I also appreciate that if you are just old, and not infirm, it is absolutely every person for him or herself.

Scouts and their structure in the park

I loved seeing the enthusiasm of the Tzofim (scouts) as they built their climbing structures in the park – did you know that the Tzofim was the “first egalitarian Scouting movement in the world, where boys and girls participate together on an equal basis”? I love so much about Israeli culture and the Jewish identity – it is painful to watch what the government is doing and to try to reconcile these two faces of Israel.

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  • Jericho – my good and bad calls
  • Evidence of support – plaques but little else
  • Skirting Jerusalem
  • Ibrahimi mosque/Machpelech cave
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