Official Delegation Report 4
Official Delegation Report 4
From Beirut to Jerusalem*
Saturday October 5:
(*Note: in order to try to catch up with our reporting, I'll report on our final day in Lebanon after our return to the USA.)
The Lebanese
They loaded their sailing ships
Exploring the planet:
They carried their merchandise
From here
Elias Abu-Saba…
10/1/2002
From here
From the coast of Lebanon
They traveled across the seas;
Over the waves and the roaring seas;
West, North and South.
The fruits of hearts
Alpha, beta and theta,
A fire and a light unto the world.
From this land,
They left their motherland.
We were up early and packed our bags, said our good-byes to Elias, and left the Daouk Apartments at 6:00 AM for the airport. The streets and highway were almost empty and we completed the airport process without difficulty. A new security twist was added as we were asked to identify our bags on the tarmac before they were loaded on the plane.
An hour later we were in Amman, met by Iyad of Guiding Star, and back on the bus. It was also a pleasure to be greeted by Mohammed Nablusi who had been our guide during our initial time in Jordan.
The descent to the Dead Sea is very dramatic. Mohammed pointed out the "Sea Level" marker and then we continued another 1,300 feet down. We stopped briefly at a souvenir shop to leave several of our bags - both to reduce our load and avoid possible difficulties at the border by carrying in materials from Lebanon and Jordan.
An hour and forty minutes after our arrival at the airport, we were at the Allenby Bridge border crossing. Mohammed dealt with the bureaucracy. It is very convenient to have a tourist agency representative expedite our passage through the airports. We had Mohammed's cell phone in the event we faced difficulty and had to contact Guiding Star after we boarded the bus to go to the Israeli side of the river.
Scott was first through the security gate, and told the Israeli security that we were traveling as a group, had just come from Lebanon, and had been in Jordan. Rachel and Zack faced the most rigorous questioning, verifying who was traveling together and where we had been. After passing through passport control, we waited for a half hour or more while our bags cleared security. Several of us had to go into a side room, identify our smaller hand bags, and open them for closer scrutiny.
There were very few other people coming across the border; at most stages our group was alone.
I commented that I didn't recognize the room in which we were waiting, and wondered why there were so few other people; the few passing through seemed to be Palestinians. It was odd seeing them going through the same facility as tourists from the US. I spotted Salim Tamari, a Palestinian who heads the Institute on Jerusalem Studies, with whom some past delegations had met. When I went up and introduced myself, Salim immediately commented, "What are you doing in here?" We were in the facility for processing Palestinians.
By 12:15, but for having to go back to pick up the laptop computer that we left by mistake (again!), we had completed entry procedures and were greeted by Rimon Makhlouf, our guide, and Issam Salaymeh, who had been our driver in April.
Jericho:
We had arranged to meet with Dr. Sami Mussalam, President Arafat's Chief of Staff in his Jericho office. Dr. Mussalam had met with our July and April delegations in Arafat's compound. Jericho is a "closed" area, into which you need permission of the Israelis to enter. Jericho has not been "re-occupied" during the Second Intifada, but Israeli authorities have isolated the town by digging a 10 x 10 trench all the way around the city and putting a checkpoint or digging a trench and blockading each of the roads into the city. We had a formal letter of invitation from Mussalam, and attempted entry into Jericho at two different checkpoints. At each point we were denied entry and told, because it was the Sabbath, that it was impossible to appeal to anyone from the Israeli District Coordinating Office (DCO) to seek approval to pass the checkpoint. One of the Palestinian officers at the Palestinian DCO suggested we take the "by-pass road" that follows the route of the old Roman Road from Jericho to Jerusalem.
So we headed up towards Jerusalem and took the Wadi ("valley") Qelt road North off the main highway, twisting our way through arid desert hills, passing occasional Bedouin encampments and several new Israeli settlements. Rimon stopped to point out the Monastery of John Goziba, a Greek Orthodox monastery tucked up against the wall of one of the deepest parts of Wadi Qelt. It is a dramatic site from across the canyon.
Several other cars, mostly yellow taxis and minivans from Jericho, pass us along the way. A short while later we came to a huge ditch that had been cut through the single-lane asphalt road, with large boulders placed to prevent vehicles from passing. The Israeli authorities had cut the road to prevent people from doing what we were attempting to do - to avoid the checkpoint and enter Jericho. We were able to pass, with Issam carefully negotiating the bus between two large boulders that had been pushed aside, with inches to spare as we inched past a 10 foot ditch to our right. The bus' bottom right side was slightly damaged as we squeezed through.
We came by a large metal gate also placed to prevent passage. It was swung open.
A half mile later we came to a second huge ditch, partially filled with rubble and dirt. Rimon jumped out and placed several large rocks in various ruts to help the bus to pass. The driver of another vehicle that had driven past us hopped out of his car, knelt low to the ground to observe the bottom of the bus passing over large stones and around large divots. He seemed to have done it before.
Having successfully cleared this second major obstacle, we soon were in Jericho and ready for lunch. All the tourist restaurants that Rimon and I knew were closed due to lack of business. So we drove to downtown Jericho and stopped at a restaurant for an excellent lunch with salads, falafel, chicken, lamb or beef. The proprietor sat with us after the meal and said that because his business is mostly local; his business was "only" off 50%. Most restaurants and other tourist-serving commerce were down 90% or more. Tourists simply don't come to Jericho anymore, given the Intifada and the checkpoint.
We met with Dr. Mussalam in his office, since there were only ten of us including guide and driver. He observed that it is easier for him to travel to Amman than to Ramallah, where his wife and daughter live. To visit Ramallah, because of the checkpoints he must walk a long distance, which he cannot do having suffered from polio. Those in Jericho enjoy a strange "normalcy" while other Palestinian towns are being battered by Israeli "incursion" and "re-invasion." Dr. Mussalam spoke of the ongoing need for reform of Palestinian political systems, a need identified long before it became the centerpiece of Israeli Prime Minister Sharon's attacks on Palestinian collective identity. He answered questions about allegations of Palestinian textbooks teaching hatred of Jews and the need for Palestinians to more convincingly make their case to the American public. Mussalam said they would take the refugees who wanted to return into the Palestinian state. "I want my right to be recognized as a refugee. I was not born a refugee. I was made a refugee." Of suicide bombers, "Some Palestinian mad people are trying to kill the peace process. Because they are not ready to make peace with the Jews, they are ready to destroy everything." He called replacement of Arafat as president, by a vote of the Palestinian people, a "far fetched or remote possibility."
After an hour's conversation, as we were readying to leave his office, one of the delegation members commented on the several photographs of horses that were on Mussalam's office walls. We soon were off to the Equestrian Center east of Jericho that he and others had built. He took us from stall to stall, introducing each horse by name, stroking their necks and noses, holding their heads next to his or greeting them through the stall doors. We met the staff of the Equestrian Center and then visited the adjacent community center where we watched children and youth practicing fencing, a women's physical fitness center, the soccer field and basketball court (the last of which was paid for with donations from the US).
We left for the checkpoint and were allowed to exit on the main road, rather than having to go back by the by-pass road. The Israeli soldiers took down Rimon's name and identity card # since they recognized him from earlier in the day when we were denied entry. After we had passed the check point Rimon went back to the Palestinian DCO office where they promised to try to have the problem resolved without Rimon having to pay a $5,200 fine for illegally entering Jericho. We were not bothered by the soldiers, though they asked to see our passports at one point. TO VIEW PHOTOS OF THE DELEGATION’S TIME IN JERICHO, PLEASE VISIT http://www.forusa.org/Programs/IPB/IPBDelegation100102.html
We drove up to Jerusalem as the sun was setting.
Jerusalem
We were greeted at St. George's Guesthouse by Johnny Khano of Guiding Star. He gave us a brief orientation to our time on the West Bank and in Jerusalem. We then went to dinner and to our rooms, relieved to rest after a long and demanding day.
Sunday October 6:
We began the day with a walking tour of the Old City of Jerusalem, led by Rimon. We entered through Damascus Gate, passed through the Christian Quarter to the Church of the Holy Sepulchre, and then through the Jewish Quarter to the Western Wall. A highlight was the view from the rooftop café where Rimon took us before approaching the Western Wall.
We then walked quickly along part of the Via Dolorosa and then North just inside the Eastern Wall from St. Stephen's Gate to the North East corner of the Walled City, where we met with Dyala Husseini Dajani. Dyala heads the Burg al Laq Laq community center, including a fitness center, preschool, assembly rooms, offices, and soccer and basketball fields, on a site that settlers and the Municipality of Jerusalem attempted to seize in 1990. A sit-in by local residents and supporters prevent construction of 200 luxury apartments in this Moslem Quarter of the City. At one point she stated, "All we want to do is to live in peace, with the Israelis or with anyone. We just want an end to the occupation."
We walked back to Stephen's Gate and met Issam, who drove us to the Jerusalem Hotel where we had lunch. We were met there by two young women from the Israeli Committee Against House Demolitions. We drove back to St. George's Guesthouse for an orientation and then drove by bus around the North and East of Jerusalem on the "settlement tour," including squatters or "sumu" refusing to be displaced from Al Quds University, the Route 1 "seam" between East and West Jerusalem, Kalandia checkpoint, meeting with Hisham Yameni who has had two homes demolished, and Ma'ale Adumim. Tanya and Na'ama provided us with excellent packets of material and maps of the "Matrix of Control."
After a rushed dinner we crossed by taxi to West Jerusalem to meet in the home of Jeremy Milgrom. Jeremy talked about the work of Rabbis for Human Rights and the Israeli peace movement. At 8:00 we were joined by a group of Israeli university students. Merom Kalie, who had participated in the summer of 2002 program that the Resource Center for Nonviolence and the national Fellowship of Reconciliation had hosted in Washington, DC, called together the students. In addition to Micol Niza and Shimon Friedlich of the summer 2001 program, we were joined by Assaf Israeli, Doron Shulziner, Chanan Reichman and Lucia Pizar, a graduate student from Mexico City visiting Jeremy.
As a delegation, we were most appreciative of and impressed by our conversation with the university students. Most identify themselves with the peace camp to one extent or the other. Doron spoke up strongly on behalf of the Labor Party. Shimon lives in a settlement near Hebron, in "the territories" he explained, using fingers of both hands to indicate quotation marks to highlight the words. He explained that his "settlement" was reestablished on land first purchased by Jewish settlers from Jordan in the 1943 but abandoned during the 1948 war. Shimon has moved to Jerusalem after having seen bullets whistling over his car while commuting home after classes one night. His story helped us appreciate the complexity of the situation that tends to polarize into a black-and-white oversimplification.
It was very moving to talk about issues with this group of bright, engaged university students. They differed among themselves on many points. There was one moment that was particularly striking, when Micol (who works for the Israeli human rights group Btselem) challenged Merom and Chanan with the observation that the Israelis always speak of "peace" and "security" while the Palestinians speak of "justice." She said this reflects the different perspective of the oppressed and the dominator, and that it wasn't acceptable for Israelis to focus on "security" without reflecting on what that means to the Palestinians.
Doron said that Sharon is definitely an obstacle to peace, but that he wasn't sure the Palestinians were sure of what they want either. All agreed that the vast majority of Israelis, while differing over the details, fully expected there to be a Palestinian state in the future.
All were discouraged and demoralized by the current state of affairs, and spoke of the devastating affect that the suicide bombings had had on Israelis willingness to consider a political settlement with the Palestinians.
Micol lamented how far away a political resolution seems now, when an agreement seemed so close two years ago. She said the Israelis must push to develop their civil society as a counterpoint to the prevailing despair and reliance on force.
Chanan said there can't be a peace "like with Egypt," a cold peace between two states, because the Israelis and Palestinians live too close to one another. "It can't be a peace that soldiers make possible, it requires a cooperative approach." He characterized the Israeli government's position at Camp David II in 2000: "All the land is ours. If you want this part, here it is. Say thank you and shut up!"
The students unanimously rejected the idea that US war with Iraq would provide a cover for Sharon to "transfer" Palestinians out of Israel or the West Bank. If anything, Israelis consider it more likely that they'll be forced to the sidelines by the US, as happened during the Gulf War.
Michael and Jeremy challenged this analysis, pointing out that the "transfer" is in many ways already underway, with living conditions made so difficult that thousands of Palestinians are simply forced out of the country for economic and family survival. "Just think of Nablus," Jeremy said, "where children have been out of school for more than a year. If you had children, would you accept another year without them being able to go to classes. If you had the chance, you'd leave."
Jeremy challenged us to take the discussion to a deeper level. These discussions, he observed, tend to be like playing cards. We sit around and talk but, after all, nothing changes. He said we must confront the issues, "We have to decide how we're going to live. What are we going to do."
Merom said there needs to be a time of calming things down. He asked us to realize that right now the Israelis are doing things much more out of fear than out of hatred.
Shimon gave an example: the head rabbi had instructed people not to sleep outside in booths during "Succoth" because of the fear of attack by terrorists.
Micol said the role and contribution of groups such as the FOR are crucial. We need third parties who are concerned for the welfare of both parties to the conflict, not just taking sides and stigmatizing the other. She said it is crucial "to show that we Israelis are not all monsters and that Palestinians are not all terrorists."
As the conversation drew to a close and we waited for taxis to arrive, animated conversations continued between individuals and in small clusters. The delegation really enjoyed engaging with these young Israelis. They are grappling with the hard questions facing Israel and each of them as individuals.
Recent months have taken a tremendous toll, not only in human life, but also in deflated hopes and the ability of people to envision a viable future for Israelis and Palestinians.
Monday October 7:
We left at 7:00 by bus for Gaza. Our departure was delayed by news of a major Israeli attack in Khan Yunis, and questions whether we'd be able to enter the Gaza Strip at all. But a round of phone calls encouraged us to try.
An hour and a half later we were passing through Erez Junction into Gaza. The border crossing was abandoned. While we were there, one group and one individual also crossed into Gaza. There was no sign of Palestinians entering Israel or returning to Gaza.
We completed Israeli passport control without any issues and walked several hundred meters to the Palestinian border where we were greeted by Rami Humarna who served as our guide. Because we had arrived a bit later than planned, we drove directly to our first appointment. We were able to view Palestinians sitting on the curb with their pant legs rolled up to reveal their ankles and shoes before entering the industrial zone next to the Erez Junction. We drove past Beit Hanoun and Old Gaza to Gaza City where we visited the site of the Israeli bombing last month that killed a leading Hamas militant plus 14 other people, including nine children. Two major apartment buildings were destroyed, and others badly damaged. We met a young boy who had lost several members of his family. The buildings are being rebuilt, with funds from UNRWA and the Palestinian Authority.
We then drove on to a tour of the Atfaluna School for deaf children. This is an impressive facility that demonstrates the care and resources that should be made available for children. The assistant director, Suad, gave us a tour of the classrooms, vocational training facilities, lecture hall and library. The delegation enjoyed a chance to support the center by purchasing some gifts at the gift shop.
We then went to meet with Dr. Haider Abdul Shafi, a founding member of the PLO and founder of the Palestine Red Crescent Society. Abdul Shafi gave a succinct and clear analysis of the failures of the Oslo Peace process. By neglecting reference to such basics as continued Israeli settlement building, the settlements doubled during the Oslo peace process. He called for the Palestinians to form a unified leadership and strike a more proactive approach to the Intifada. He said he favored a consistent approach of strictly defensive military actions, defending Palestinian lands and homes, and rejected the suicide bombings and attacks on civilians. The current Intifada not only has provided Sharon with the pretext for killing innocent civilians. It has also provided him excuse for destroying historic structures, lands and trees and Palestinian civil society.
Abdul Shafi was especially critical of the Palestinians' failure to commit adequate resources to speaking to the American people. Abdul Shafi studied for five years in the US and knows the American people to be fair-minded. He said a two-state solution is still possible, but thinks there will eventually emerge a single bi-national state.
After a leisurely lunch on the veranda of the Beach Hotel overlooking the Mediterranean, we drove through Beach Camp, viewing the narrow alleyways and crowded streets. We were especially struck by the graffiti on the walls by various political factions. We stopped to photograph one wall emblazoned with the words, "Yes to tolerance. Yes to coexistence. Yes to altruism."
We stopped at the PLO flag shop for souvenirs. The shopkeeper encouraged us to buy two-flag pins. When I asked him if he had Palestinian-Israeli flag pins, he said, "That's a funny one." And then he reached over to the counter next to the basket with flag pins of many nations. He picked up a pin sitting face down next to the basket and held it up for me to see: crossed Israeli and Palestinian flags. I said that he should put them out that the Israeli peace movement sells them in Israel. "One day, we hope," he smiled.
After a brief stop at the Craft Village we were back on the bus. All day we had been hearing reports of Israeli attacks, assassination of a highly place Palestinian official, a dozen Palestinian casualties. As we left Gaza, we saw the aftermath of a clash - riot police from the Palestinian Authority with long wooden batons, rocks strewn all over the intersection, crowds of people milling about. We sped through the intersection and to Erez junction. Twenty minutes after arrival, we were through passport control and into Israel. A long line of Palestinian workers stretched from the border facility along the roadway bordering the huge parking lot, almost all the way to the highway. We wondered aloud about the cost to the Palestinian economy of the many hours that tens of thousands of Palestinians waste just standing in line each day.
The sunset over the Mediterranean was bright red and pink. Several of our heads drooped to sleep. More than one embroidered pillows bought for gifts souvenirs were put to good use.
The image of the Palestinians lining up to return home to Gaza stuck with me as we drove back to Jerusalem.
Scott Kennedy
10/8/02
Correction from Report 3:
"The film concluded, however, with raw video footage taken by several individuals with cameras after Israel unilaterally pulled back from Southern Lebanon in MAY OF 2000 (not 1985)."