in the middle east

There is nothing simple about the Palestinian-Israeli conflict. Each side has its own story and rhetoric, and we’ve often found it very difficult, if not impossible, to get to the bottom of things. Perhaps the most important thing I’ve learned this year about the conflict is that nothing is really as it seems, and that you have to constantly question what you’re told in the media, and check out things for yourself. Jessica and I have had some great opportunities to spend time in the West Bank this year, and we’ve been saddened and scandalized by the things we’ve seen and the stories we’ve heard. I’d like to share about two of these experiences. (1) The cycles of violence at work here are tragic, and the people in power on both sides do precious little to counter the real forces generating the problems. However, for westerners, the actions and policies of the Israeli government that have called forth such violence are much less well-known. Even though the media often portrays the nation of Israel as the underdog, beset by enemies on all sides, if you take time to drive around the West Bank, there is no question who has military dominance over this land. One of Israeli's primary efforts in “solving” the conflict has been the erection of a 436 mile-long, 20ft high separation wall that is supposed to divide the West Bank, i.e. the Palestinian state, from the state of Israel. The stated purpose of the wall is to prevent the uncontrolled entry of Palestinians into Israel for security reasons. However, if one actually does some research into the history of the wall’s origins, and takes a day or two to follow the wall through its many twists and turns, you’ll find that ‘security’ is merely one of its functions: it has also become a tool for confiscating Palestinian-owned land, and for cutting off Palestinians from social or economic development. For more information on the wall, check out this Israeli organization trying to expose the wall for what it is (www.btselem.org); and for a helpful map of the wall in relation to the 1967 UN agreed borders Click Here. (2) Closely related to the wall, is the existence of the many Israeli settlements inside of the West Bank. Since the war of June 1967, the state of Israel has been a military occupier of the West Bank, and they have total control over all roads, entrances and exits to Palestinian cities, water resources, etc. Thus, even though these lands have by international agreement been given to the Palestinian state, the Israeli military is the one in power. The government funds or promulgates Israeli-exclusive settlements inside the West Bank, and then surrounds them with massive military protection as they grow and swallow up the land and villages around them. There are today almost half a million Israelis living in settlements inside the West Bank; i.e. inside the very lands that Israel is offering to the Palestinian state in the “land for peace.” You can see why this is a raw deal. It’s like someone confiscating your house, taking up residence in the upper story, and then asking you for peace by giving the lower story. These settlements are often built on land that has been confiscated from Palestinians, who have no legal recourse to get back their lands. For more basic information on these settlements from an Israeli-run human rights organization, click here.
While the media often makes careful note that many Palestinian groups in power have not “renounced terrorism,” the other side of the coin is rarely addressed: the Israeli government actively engaged in land-grabs, and is occupying and settling in the very lands it is supposedly offering in exchange for peace.
My goal in offering pictures and stories is not to be pro-Palestinian or anti-Israeli, but pro-justice, and to inform my friends in the U.S. of an under-represented voice: that of the Palestinian civilians, whose lands and livelihoods have been utterly destroyed as the powers scheme against one another.
We’ve had the opportunity to hear some of their stories and see the realities they face, and I’d like to share some of the experiences with you: just Click Here.