Be Careful Those Arabs Are Dangerous
Together with one of the volunteers from the Fauzi Azar Inn, Mike Chong, we made two day trips last week into the West Bank. On both occasions we had encounters with Israeli Defense Forces; both events were frightfully similar. Not frightening because we were in any danger, but frightening because of what these young highly armed troops told us
Our first visit took us to a hilltop south of Jerusalem, not far from Bethlehem. Here we were visiting Daoub Nassar owner of a small farm he calls Tent of Nations. The land, in his family for generations, is completely surrounded by Israeli settlements. The farm looks down on all of them. The Israelis don't like this. They want the Nassar family off the land and are doing everything in their power to see this happen. Daoub is doing everything he can to prevent it.
The road to the farm has been bulldozed and blocked. We parked our rental car, scrambled over the boulders and began walking up the road to the gate leading to the farm itself. Soon we were put upon by two IDF patrolmen running up to us. They immediately demanded to know where we were going and what we were doing.
"We're on our way to visit the farm up the road....is there any problem with that?"
"Yes, why are you going there?
"For a visit" we replied, "is this a closed military zone?"
"No, but it's dangerous here."
"Dangerous from who?" I asked, wanting to say 'you're the one I should be afraid of, you're the people with the bloody guns'. I bit my tongue to keep quiet.
"We don't want you getting hurt."
This time I just had to laugh and say we're fine, we really don't need protection here.
They let us on our way, but the fact that they really thought we were in danger is a sad state of affairs. What have these guys been brought up to believe? We asked Daoud if the troops ever stop by the farm just for a friendly chat. No. There is little to no conversations.
And the exact same thing happened a few days later while visiting Haj Sami Sadeq in the village of Al Aqaba. While driving to the community we stopped to explore a 'mock arab village' used for IDF training. This permanent placement, within eyesight of the village, is an ominous presence. Again a military guard came up behind us demanding to know where we were going and what we were doing.
Playing dumb we explained......" I think we took a wrong turn.... we're looking for the village of Al Aqaba."
"You shouldn't go there, its dangerous" was the reply.
Again this seemed so incredulous to hear. There is probably no more peaceful place anywhere; there's a kindergarten school, a tiny tea factory and a woman's sewing cooperative. There's a bunch of sheep and cows and a Mayor in a wheelchair, who despite being wrongfully shot by these same IDF soldiers, advocates peaceful coexistence.
All this so starkly points out the huge gulf between Israelis and Palestinians. We asked Daoub about this and he had a fascinating answer. He told us, "you know we're not afraid of the Israelis, but they are deeply afraid of us. We know the Israelis have all the power today and they are doing everything they can to hold on to that power, but we are strong, our cause is just. Eventually we will win."
That too seems to be the attitude in Al Aqaba village. They are taking their destiny into their own hands. They are developing their tea cooperative. A cheese factory is in development. They are nearing completion of three news homes, the first of 30 planned for the community, and they have begun a brick factory. All this is very positive.
We have just arrived back in Al Aqaba. Here, there is a story taking place within the context of the ever changing political landscape. House demolitions are escalating throughout the West Bank as settlements expand.
For all intent and purpose it appears the Israeli government is attempting to clear the West Bank's Jordan Valley of Palestinians and force them to move to tightly controlled concentrated areas. It is ethnic cleansing by no other name.
Needless to say those living on the land want none of this. And this story is sadly under reported. In a small way it is hoped our documentary Constructive Resistance can be seen in the west. The people of Al Aqaba should not feel they are isolated and alone.
February 8, 2013
Daoub Nassar
View from Tent of Nations overlooking settlement block
Blocked road to Tent of Nations
IDF Training village within eyesight of Al Aqaba
Maurice and Haj Sami Sadiq in Al Aqaba
THE PALESTINE CHRONICLES
A blog from Maurice Jacobsen
Facing Al Aqaba
March 20, 2013
Welcome to Al Aqaba. These concrete blocks are the Israeli token of greeting. It's a
bit hard to see in the above photo, but the line at the bottom of the barrier reads
FIRING AREA ENTRANCE FORBIDDEN.
And unfortunately, this is not to be taken lightly. The mosque that you see up the hill is the center of town and it is not uncommon to have Israeli troops patrol through the village as if they own it.
We are in Area C. The area of the West Bank completely under Israeli control and they don't want the residents of Al Aqaba, or any other of the small Arab communities, to forget it for a moment.
To better understand the political and social background of this area of the West Bank, known as the Jordan Valley, you might want to download the reports to your right from the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, the Israeli human rights organization B'Tselem, and the Palestinian development group Ma'an.
If you're an Arab resident of this territory these are tales of your worst nightmare. For those out of the region they are tales of disenfranchisement at best.
The land confiscation, intimidation, eviction and home demolition as outlined in these reports is sadly under-reported in the west. But these actions are as damaging, if not far more damaging, than the settlement expansion that gets top billing. Here in Al Aqaba literally every residence is under demolition orders by the Israeli Civil Administration, even though the land has been owned by community residents from time even before the creation of Israel.
This is not as it should be. It is an issue that cries out for media attention. After all, I ask, how many places in the world can you be invited to an excellent Kabab dinner cooked by the Mayor himself.
To tell the Al Aqaba story documentary films are certainly a choice vehicle, as the Oscar nominated project Five Broken Cameras excellently illustrates. And we, the Inshallhah Media Project, are in full production of our documentary here in the village Constructive Resistance.
But also we as documentarians (artists) need to think a bit more creatively. Thus the project FACING AL AQABA.
There are, give or take, 300 people now living in the village, a lot of them are children. Needless to say they are all caught in this geopolitical struggle over which they have little to no control. Thus, to give people around the world a better sense of who lives here and the situation they find themselves we have begun to create photographic portraits of every man, woman and child living in the community.
The mission is to then to mount these images in a museum/gallery setting where the photos can be displayed in an environment surrounded by the above pictured concrete barriers.
The sounds of the F-15 fighter jets, the baying of sheep, cow bells, the call to prayer, brief oral histories, and the distant thud of artillery is our sound track. This visceral experience might just touch a nerve that a documentary seen on television or on screen might not.
This is guided by the educational axiom:
Tell me and I will forget
Show me and I may remember
Engage me and I will understand
Within the next six weeks the photos should be completed.
And certainly we will need cash resources to properly print and mount the exhibit to world-class standards.....so we will be starting a funding campaign as well.
To begin, for your enjoyment we present a preview slideshow of the FACING AL AQABA
portraits. Enjoy.
