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No Deal
Pictured Here: A coalition of Palestinians rally together in front of Checkpoint 56.
Shortly after the April 9 elections in Israel, Trump and Netanyahu are intending on presenting a plan to establish a Palestinian state. That is only potentially possible if Netanyahu is re-elected.
No matter the outcome of the election, Palestinians in al-Khalil rallied together to say that no one but the Palestinian people can determine the destiny of the Palestinian people.
(February 22, 2019)
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Spring Cleaning
Pictured Here: As the rays of sun warm the beautiful architecture of past generations, friends gather to re-design a forgotten sandbox into a space of life.
Situated above an area restricted to Palestinians, a 6x15 section sat neglected after it became too dangerous for the children at the kindergarten to play in it. Once upon a time, this sandbox was filled with laughter and joy. However, after harassment and incidents with the military, it was best for the children to avoid it altogether.
This sandbox proved to be a fertile ground for plants to grow in and was then, over time, changed into a box of weeds. With some vision and sweat, CPT, with the help of local friends, began the transformation into a garden! The teacher plans to involve the children in planting and with that, their blessing of the garden.
With no home depot or local gardening store, herbs and flowers have been donated and tools borrowed. The soil amendments will be sourced locally from the donkeys and horses, in addition to the nearby soil being hauled only a quarter mile away!
(February 22, 2019)
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Sowing Seeds
Pictured here: Palestinian Values at the Heart of a School Under Siege
The Qurtoba School in the Israeli controlled H2 Area of Hebron endured a recent attack by a group of settlers. The yelling, stone throwing and raiding were spoken of as “Jews causing trouble” by one of the thousands of soldiers employed to protect the settlers.
The large display above greets all who enter the offices of the school. The extraordinary resilience of the teachers, students and families at Qurtoba has been forged over decades in the midst of increasing violence and militarism.
Kathleen Kern writes of an incident in 1995 when the Palestinian flag was raised at the school and settlers from across the street “charged onto the school grounds, seized the flag, and burned it. They attacked the school headmistress, striking her in the chest. That day ambulances took 10 girls to the hospital.”
The mission of this school builds on a pervasive cultural context of beauty, dignity and endurance! All worth celebrating even as students and teachers continue to walk to school daily passing guns, military vehicles and settler hostility.
(February 25, 2019)
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Tradition Continues
Pictured here: On the eve of the "Open Shuhada Street" demonstration, youth and adults gather to enjoy music and dancing.
Turnstiles, body checks, constant threats and harassment- these are some of the few obstacles that Palestinians face in al-Khalil. Simple tasks like buying groceries or clothes are made more difficult as access to and from the markets are determined by the moods of the young soldiers on that particular day. Because of these challenging barriers to a more normal life, creativity is the best remedy to generating happiness and finding light in the darkness.
Getting lost in the beauty of dance and music is the scene that you can see above. This traditional dance of Dabke is one way to find the joys in life and connect with generations of Palestinians that have lived and walked in the same streets as the ones dancing in the picture.
This amazing gathering took place the night before al-Khalil assembled to march on the gates and blockades that prevent Palestinians from walking on the stolen Shuhada street. 2019 marked the 9th anniversary of the march to reclaim the heart of the city.
(February 21, 2019)
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Open Shuhada Street
Pictured above and below: Hundreds of Palestinians come together to call for an end to the Israeli occupation on a solemn anniversary.
In light of the 25th anniversary weekend of the massacre at the Ibrahimi Mosque by an American-Israeli illegal settler who murdered 29 Palestinians and injured over 100 others, Palestinians gathered to commemorate the sad occasion at a local mosque and then marched down to an Israeli military base near the Ibrahmi Mosque.
They demanded the right to self-determination, an end to the Israeli occupation, and the reopening of Shuhada Street which was once the economic lifeline for Hebron.
With the expulsion of TIPH, the major international human rights observer for the past 22 years, just less than a month ago, there was heightened level of press coverage for the demonstrations; this may have led to some restraint from Israeli soldiers who later fired tear gas, a few stun grenades, and a few rubber bullets when there was less press present.
(February 22, 2019)
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