On the Road

After weeks in the south of the West Bank, and before heading home, I needed to travel north to learn something new. The Al Aqsa Intifada has been described as having died down in the south but being very much alive in the north to this day.

In the Hebron region,we have been accompanying farmers to their land around Beit Ummar who face constant terrorism from settlers with Israeli military backing. We also have had the opportunity to sit on the street near Tel Rumeida settlement in Hebron to document and disrupt any settler attacks on Palestinian children. We have attended anti-war demonstrations in the south that show support for Hezbollah as it takes on Israel, the bully. And we have stayed with Bedouins, forced or indigenous, to offer some security from midnight raids by settlers in masks who beat families and burn down homes.

But we also work in other regions. ISM has been supporting Non-Violent Direct Action for at least 5 years in various regions of the West Bank and Gaza and a crew has begun to reengage work in Nablus. A couple of us headed north to support the efforts underway and to learn about life and resistance in another region.

The north is much greener than the areas near the South Hebron Hills for instance, but not all villages are as lush as Beit Ummar. On the ride up you can still see olive trees whereas in the south many fields have been leveled by Israel. I also notice that villages seem farther away from each other and on this day there isn't much military visible on the roads heading north.

As we pass a bend, another International shares with me the legend of a Palestinian sharpshooter who sat in the hills patiently waiting for a soldier to pass by. He then used an inherited Jordanian rifle to eliminate his enemy, cleanly and quietly. The sniper is said to have dropped 7 Israeli soldiers in one day but within 7 days he himself was eliminated by Israel.

This sense of sacrifice and patience pushes many Palestinians.