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Greetings to all of you have chosen to follow this blog. I thought I would give you a quick update of my time since leaving Huwwara. Gaby and I traveled to Bethlehem, met with some MPT friends there to learn more about the struggle, spent the night at a nice Guest House and got prepared for our night in a tent. East Jerusalem is slowly being taken over by the Israelis. One Palestinian home is actually divided - Palestinians living in part of it and Israeli settlers living in an addition. Long story. We will blog more detail on the team blog soon. We spent the night in a "tent" with two young men from Sweden. The continual presence of internationals in this tent allows the Palestinian family to rest and not worry all night. It is hard to imagine living like this ... with hostile forces living in part of your home. The Israeli settlers have made loud noises, turned up the music at late hours, thrown water, bleach, urine, feces, and vomit at the internationals. Both sides have cameras mounted to gather evidence should the police need to be involved. Our night on watch was rather tame ... just some goofy comments for the settlers. They all appear to be young men who hang out there rather than really live there. It was a cold miserable night.
We moved on to Hebron the next day and spent two nights with CPT - Christian Peacemaker Team. We had a little confrontation with the police while watching a checkpoint one morning, observed the clean up operation after a home demolition, and saw Palestinian children walking home with Israeli military escort in At Tawani. ....more details on the team blog.
We traveled to the Bethlehem area; took part in a demonstration at Al Walaja - they are a lot more fun without the tear gas; met with some leaders of the struggle; and ended team time. Gaby moved back to Hebron to work with an NGO teaching English.
I spent two nights with John Gore, a 2006 Kinawind staffer who is now a UM missionary in Bethlehem. We attended church services in the East Jerusalem Baptist Church. Pastor Alex Awad and I are working together in hopes of bringing a Palestinian Christian to Kinawind next summer.
After the hassle I received while entering Israel, I anticipated difficulty in the exiting process. I had none - walked right through. I don't understand how they determine who to search and question. They were pulling many aside....but missed me.
I have been home for a week. Jet lag hit me hard but I seem to be back to normal now. My photos are all in the mail somewhere. Carrying them out could create problems at the airport so most folks mail them. When they arrive, I will have a few worthy of sharing.
Peace to all, Fred