I am halfway through my trip to Ha Eretz, the Land, Israel. Over the next two weeks I will travel from the Lebanon border through Jordan in back into Israel through Elat. A blog about my trip thus far could be 10 pages of just the "where" and "what".
For example, last week I participated in the 2007 Charlie Awards conference. The Charlie award has been give to 45 young adult leaders from all over the world. This year's class of Charlies were 15 people from 9 countries. As Jewish community leaders living in Diaspora we had the special opportunity to come to Israel through CLI (center for leadership initiatives) and the Schusterman Foundation and receive special tours of amazing projects ranging from innovative medical care to new student-led Zionism to homeless shelters for teens. Each tour gave us a new perspective of Israel and Israeli society. The stories of each project and the leaders that created them and continue to develop them inspired all of us to rethink about our projects and communities.
This week of inspirational stories of Jewish leaders creating a strong and vibrant Israeli society was juxaposed with a trip to Nablus in the West Bank.
Less than an hours drive from Jerusalem (but is usually take 2 to 3 hours with border crossings and check points), Nablus is a vibrant and active Palestinian city with a university. Nablus was the site of a large battle in 2002 and is still considered a hot-bed for resistance and insurgency. So, what brought me to Nablus and why would I allow myself to go there?
Last fall Moishe House hosted a group of young adults from Palestine and Jordan for Camp Tawonga's Peace Makers weekend. When I new I would be traveling to Israel this summer I took advantage of the connections our house had made with these young leaders and contacted two Palestinians. I must say that I was not alone. Isaac who had orginally met the leaders and had participated in last year's camp made most of the arrangements. Together we spent two days in Nablus, first traveling from East Jerusalem to Ramalah and finally being escorted to Nablus by a friend.
In Nablus our hosts were Wagdee and Majed. Wagdee is 22 and speak almost perfect English with a half Aussie and half Texan accent. He claims he only studied English for 4 months and the rest has come from watching videos and taking advantage of every opportunity to speak with foreigners. I wish I had such an aptitude for language. Wagdee recently finished his IT management degree and lives with his family (month, father, grandmother, 4 brothers, and one sister), all of whom are amazingly warm people. In fact everywhere we visited we were offered tea and coffee and food and of course a story or two. Everyone has stories and they were so appreciative that we were willing to listen. But more about that later.
Majed is in his 30s and lives alone in a penthouse appartment overlooking the center of town. Majed attended last year's Peace Makers conference and although he does not speak English he had the most to say of our two hosts. (By the end of the two days Wagdee's jaw and tongue must have been killing him because he had been talking for two people) Majed has started his own organization which tries to organize camps for children. Majed and Wagdee both claim to be unaffiliated with either of the two main political parties, Hamas or Fetah. While Hamas provides many social services such as schools and camps for children in addition to food hand outs and health care, Fetah is seen as a bloated and corrupt party. And still Majed believes that he can make a difference by trying to provide the same services as Hamas without the propaganda and hatred.
Majed is amazing in this way. He is always pronouncing and declaring new ideas and programs he wants to starts. Majed is a doer and very well respected in Nablus. But his respect came at a price. Last year in March his brother was killed. He was a leaders of a resistance brigade and died in a gun battle with Israelis. Posters of Majed's brother are plastered all over Nablus. Majed has several paintings and pictures of him in his home. Despite all of this Majed continues to work for peace.
During our two days in Nablus Isaac and I sat for tea or coffee at least 10 times and each time we got a story. In the old city we met a young man who was planting flowers in an alter for a martyr. The martyr was his brother and his younger bother was helping him (the younger one is named for the older brother who died). He told us how each day he replants the flowers because each night IDF soldiers tear them out. He told us how at the age of 22 he has already spent two years in jail and been shot 7 times. His sister and other family members are currently in jail. He told us how just the night before IDF special force took over the apartment that his family lives in to use it as a makeshift base for the evening.
Clearly with suicide bombings and rockets being launched from Gaza and Lebanon, Israel has real reasons for concern. I did not ask this young man why he had been thrown in jail. Had he gotten into an arguement with Israelis? Was he throwing rocks or molatov cocktails as his brother has been doing when he died? Or was he just a suspect?
While in Nablus you cannot help but notice that life seems relatively normal. Cell phones ring everywhere. Cars honk there horns. Markets are full of people, food, and modern commercial goods. Signs of squawler were no more profound than any other "developing country". According to Wagdee the situation is different for refugees living in and around Nablus. But generally the signs of "oppression" are not as obvious as one might think.
What is apparent once you talk with anyone or spend a night in Nablus is the psychological effects of the conflict. At midnight Nablus is a ghost town. The streets are empty except for a lone taxi and a few ambulence. The informal or formal curfew set by regular IDF raids forces Nablusis off the streets, out of coffee shops and into their homes. If the are on the street they run the risk of harrassment, arrest, or worse the possibility of getting cause in the cross-fire of IDF and resistance gun fire.
With darkness on Nablus, I spent both evenings on Majed's terrance waiting to see the IDF. Each night I did not last much past 1:30am before passing out for the night. In the morning I would get a report from Wagdee of last nights raids. On the last morning I was told that special forces driving a white truck came in at 1:30am. Before going to sleep I remembered seeing a white truck and thinking that it was very odd.
While I watch Nablus I talked to Majed and Wagdee about the situation. I asked Wagdee what was the first thing that came to mind when I said "Israel". He said "Check points." As we both looked across the valley and up to the mountain tops where the only light are beacons from the IDF bases, Wagdee told me his check point stories. The next day I found out exactly what he meant.
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