Shebab and Jeish

For some reason people back home in the U.S. get the impression that Israel and Palestine are somewhat equal and share equally in violence. However, this is not the case here.

Israel has a well-trained, heavily armed military which is supported fully by its superpower benefactor, the United States. Palestine has fighters, from various small associations, who pull together guns, rockets, and tragically suicide belts in order to resist the occupation.

This is the violence that we read about and see in the news.

What we don't know about is the everyday violence of the occupation that may be less bloody, but no less deadly. A form of genocide and gentrification is at work here. Apartheid is alive and well. Ethnic cleansing is the order of the day.

We also don't know enough about the daily resistance of the Palestinian people. It is not suicide bombers and terrorists like the western media would have us believe. There is armed struggle in Palestine; there are freedom fighters and guerilleros. However, the majority of the resistance is non-violent direct action, civil disobedience, and daily rebellion against the occupation. Think of the civil rights movement in the United States and Blacks fighting against apartheid in South Africa.

The masses are simply surviving this difficult dynamic and many are pushed to engage in what we would call activism -organizing protests, demonstrations, marches and building solidarity. Overall there is a culture of resistance. Palestinian flags are beautiful symbols of life and love in the face of hate. The rose that grew from concrete.

In the U.S. there are some who imagine Palestinians as ultra-violent, even the kids throw rocks at Israelis, but that is far from what I have experienced walking through neighborhoods in Ramallah, Hebron, or in the small village of Beit Ummar.

The majority of the people are warm and inviting. Many people assume that my buddy and I are Israeli and often offer us Shalom. The majority of the Palestinians on the streets in Beit Ummar are children. When they discover that we are Amriki, they often ask What is your name or say Hello, how are you, over and over and over again. In the cities, people keep to themselves and we are obvious outsiders but all is peace.

So who are the rock throwers? What is that all about? Let's see, Israeli Occupation Forces have soldiers posted around illegal Israeli settlements [colonies] in the West Bank. These settlements are built on land grabbed from the Palestinians and the soldiers treat the indigenous community with vitriolic hate for the most part. It is not uncommon for soldiers to drive through the towns shooting. In Gaza, the site of heightened violence, fighter jets fly low over head and create sonic booms to disturb the Palestinian families where they live. On any given day soldiers dehumanize Palestinians in their own communities and homes. So what happens?

This oppression is fertile ground for a growing resistance. I am surprised Palestinians aren't cold-hearted and callous. They are loving but they are defiant. The children are especially valiant. These youth are the Shebab. They weave makeshift slingshots out of found materials and launch stones at Israeli jeeps that taunt and threaten the Palestinian communities by driving back and forth on the roads that lead to the center of town.

I saw Israeli soldiers, the despised Jeish, drive halfway down a road, park their jeep and proceed to instigate children with their rifles. The Shebab responded to this by cautiously positioning themselves hundreds of meters away and sending stones in the air toward the Jeish. The scene is absurd. Jeish pointing arms at kids is revolting; Shebab whirling slingshots in the air and sending stones at the Jeish is incredible. Your heart breaks that this is their reality, that defiance is their game. They practically play hide and seek with Jeish, but the stakes are high. The Shebab are as graceful as playful in their contribution to the resistance, and they are brave.

Yesterday I watched this scene play out after we were beaten by Jeish and Musa was arrested. A 15 year old named Asim was arrested for being the farmlands near the settlement and children were driven down a street by soldiers.

The Jeish shot their rubber bullets and the Shebab slung their stones. Everyone cheered when the soldiers finally retreated. The Shebab won this battle.