Internationals for Justice in Palestine

Delergation Report Backs - Tracy03

We left the Bethlehem area and headed for Hebron. There, we met with a women's group and were able to watch how they democratically work through developing a new women's center and programs for the Hebron area. From there we left to see the old city of Hebron.

This is where we have seen the most overt effects of occupation. Hebron is home to a very important religious site for both Muslims and Jews. Thus, there is a very large settlement that has confiscated much of Hebron. The old city and the main markets have been closed for many years, and only recently reopened to Palestinians, causing most of the shop owners to move literally to the middle of a main street in Hebron. The impact has been traffic congestion for the entire city.

We went through the old city, which was known for its extensive market activity, but now there are only a few shops. And it is easy to see why there are few shops, as the heavily armed Israeli soldiers were soon there in massive numbers. You can also see how settlers have taken homes that are above the market area. They throw their trash down on the Palestinians who walk below.

We went to a holy site, the Sanctuary of Abraham. We were extensively searched TWICE just to go into a place of worship. In '94, an Israeli doctor walked into this holy place and opened fire on the people praying, killing 22 people. And for this the Palestinians need to go through 2 metal detectors and bag searches, all done by armed soldiers. Once you get into the site, there are even more soldiers, as the site has been divided into 2 parts, one for Muslims and the other for Jews. Soldiers and security cameras can be seen all around.

Shortly after, word of mouth spread that there had been a bombing and one of the Palestinians involved was from Hebron. This automatically means that his family's home is demolished in the middle of the night, and that the entire town goes under curfew. Intensive bag searches and road closures happen all around the city. This is all Israeli policy, collective punishment for people fighting for their freedom.

Thus we are stuck in the Hebron area for the night. We will try the checkpoint tomorrow and be able to report about the treatment at the Hebron checkpoint when we get home.

In Solidarity,

Tracy
Internationals for Justice in Palestine—A delegation project of the Palestine Solidarity Group