Birzeit, Palestine 27 January 2003
Last week, I went to visit a girlfriend who studies at Birzeit University. I reached there by taking a shared cab sneaking on settler roads, which put the fear of God into me. Ramallah was closed, so I couldn’t take the usual route to Birzeit. Diaa Haddad writes from the village. Read more about Birzeit Blues
Hebron 25 January 2003
In the summer of 2001, a small group of five to ten Israeli settlers confiscated a hill belonging to Palestinian farmers at the north end of the Beqa’a Valley, near the Harsina Settlement, east of Hebron. The settlers erected a few primitive structures and began a new “illegal” (according to current Israeli law) outpost. Art Gish writes from Hebron. Read more about Can anyone do something to stop this?
Gaza Strip 25 January 2003
At 9 o’clock yesterday morning the Israeli military destroyed all of the bridges the lead in and out of Beit Hanoun in the north of the Gaza Strip. Israeli tanks and helicopters then shelled the town for 18 hours. And this was just one part of Gaza. Kristen Ess reports. Read more about Israel pounds Gaza into dust
Ramallah 24 January 2003
Walking the streets of Ramallah these days has become an act of reflection, uncertainty and force of will. Having just returned from a break from Cairo, where I was reminded what it was like to walk the streets of an Arab country without apprehension, with its bustle and life, its smells, shouts, laughter and systematized chaos, I could not help but mourn the loss of those walks in Ramallah. I walk the streets now, wondering what will happen during each journey. Hanan Elmasu writes from Ramallah. Read more about Where the streets had a name
Jenin 23 January 2003
The young men have gathered in Lulu’s room, piling onto the spare bed and offering me a chair with their instantaneous politeness. Munir’s placid face looks out from his poster across his younger brother’s bed and beyond. Lulu’s nickname means “pearls,” recalling the Quran’s celestial simile of serving-boys like protected pearls. Lulu was protected in this world. Although the tank sniper damaged his legs severely, he is still amongst the living to keep his brother Munir in his heart. Annie Higgins writes from occupied Jenin. Read more about Re: At the theatre
Jenin, Palestine 20 January 2003
Every home has flowers. “It’s because we want to show that we still find beauty in spite of all the difficult conditions,” explains Im Ayman. But I suspect the tradition pre-dates Israel’s oppression. It must have its roots in the ancient gardens of peasants and urban classes alike, in a common appreciation of nature’s gifts. Annie Higgins writes from Jenin. Read more about Hearts and Flowers
Ram, Palestine 19 January 2003
I met up with a group of friends, including a few of my favourite village boys. These boys are not a politically minded bunch. Who are you going to vote for? I asked the boys. I didn’t normally ask questions like this, simply because its previously been a conversation killer. Read more about Fifteen kilos of radishes in the Galilee and a vote
Jenin, Palestine 18 January 2003
The idea of Sharon with broom in hand is comical enough, but the suggestion that he sweep the rooms of the Islamic Center that his soldiers left in shambles made me laugh. My friend, who conducts Qur’anic study sessions, always manages to find humor in the midst of the bleakest conditions. Her laughter itself is a resistance against the gravity of oppression. Annie Higgins writes from Jenin. Read more about Swept Clean
Ram, Palestine 15 January 2003
I have a headache today. I’m not the only one. The woman in the apartment building in Silwan, where I was this morning also has a headache. So does her children. She told me herself. Read more about Explosions, a headache from an unlikely source
Jenin, Palestine 15 January 2003
Photo by Musa Al-Shaer.
“As I was walking from the house at the top of the hill, occupied by Israeli forces from beginning to end of the sixteen-day invasion of Jenin Refugee Camp in October/November, schoolboys on the road asked me this question. It is a refrain that punctuates my comings and goings, and it is one that leaves me tongue-tied. The question is not, ‘Do you talk to them?’ because anybody can do that. What matters is if they respond with words rather than gunfire. The nature of the soldiers’ response is a source of curiosity for people who are always in danger of being shot rather than spoken to.” Annie Higgins writes from Jenin. Read more about Do they talk to you?