. I learned how to correctly make Arabic coffee, which is a useful skill here especially when lots of guests are coming through. We had delicious cousa mashy for lunch with Niveen, Nermeen, and Loai, and then later Hannan, her husband, Isam, Nawal, Shorok, Amal, Russia, her husband and 3 kids, Rawan and her husband, and Shorok's brother Issa all came over at one point or another for coffee and snacks. 
Jiries Sr. took me and Jiries Jr. to buy a HOOKAH! We had burgers (in pita bread of course) for dinner outside and then all the young people hung out in my room listening to music and smoking hookah. Today we woke up to suprise FALAFEL for breakfast compliments of Jiries! Falafel here is unbelievably good. While eating breakfast someone noticed that some Israeli jeeps were driving towards Beit Sahour. While checking it out through the dining room window, we also saw soldiers were wandering away from their military camp, which is only a short distance away from the
house and right next to Ush Garab, the community center. Through binoculars, we watched one jeep with an Israeli flag flying behind it stop at a house and a soldier get out an approach the house. We didn't see what happened then because the house was faceing the other way, but soon the jeep left. When we redirected our attention to the soliders traveling on foot, we found that they had stopped a sheperd wandering with his flock of sheep. Jiries Jr. saw them pat the sheperd down and when the binoculars were passed to me I saw them motion for the sheperd to empty the small sack on his back.
Soon enough the soldiers left the sheperd alone, and within minutes he and his flock were no where to be seen. The soldiers retreated to their military base. Maureen, Jiries, Jiries, Tata Huda and I piled in the car and went to town to run a few errands, but it was just after noon so everywhere was closed for lunch. We drove over to the location that we had seen the Israeli jeeps hanging around at to see what was going on. There I had my first encounter with an Israeli settler. We pulled up to an intersection somewhere between the Israeli military camp and a large mountain, and on the side of the road were (clearly) Jewish settlers removing Israeli flags from the guardrail and loading them into the back of a van next to a large sign that said "WELCOME TO SHDEMA". Maureen really wanted to find out what they were doing so her and I got out of the car and went over to talk to them.
There were 2 women and one man bustling around the van, and first we approached the man but he did not speak English, so we went over to the women and introduced ourselves and asked what they were doing. One woman handed us a pamplet and said they were marking the entrance to the Israeli military camp so people would know where to go for the "July seminar". Maureen asked her where exactly the seminar was being held, and what it is about. The woman talked for a bit about Areas A, B, and C, and told us that "there used to be a military base on top of the mountain but unfortunately the Israeli army had to abandon it at one point, and the Arabs took it over and did terrible things to it but thankfully the army camp was reestablished after the Second Intifada". She was clearly irritated by us.
Maureen asked her about the community center, Ush Gharab (where we had soccer/dinner/dancing on the TOL trip), which is right next to one of the military camps. The settler scowled and told us that the "community center will be demolished soon because it was illegally built and it is just another example of how the Arabs are trying to take over Judea from Israel." I asked, "Wait, didn't USAID pay for that community center to be built?" She gave us a look of disgust and said "Yes, because now the US is collaborating with the Arabs," as she closed the doors of the van she added, "Besides, we don't need the US, we will take our land, and we will win. In the end, we always win." She hopped in the drivers seat, slammed the door and drove away.
Upon arriving home, Jiries gave me a verbal history of the land Ush Gharab is on. Before the 1967 War it was owned by the people of Beit Sahour. It has been in their hands for hundreds of years until in 1966 when the Jordanian army decided to build a military camp on the land. At first they tried to buy land from the people of Beit Sahour, but the people refused. The Jordanian army took the land anyways, and put some compensation money in the bank that amounted to almost notiong. In 1966 they built the military camp on top of the hill and they called it a "supply camp" for army goods. They bought 88 donums (measurement units used here- about 1,000 square meters) on the top of the mountain but took additional land by fencing it in. Israel gained control of the military camp during the 1967 War and declared it "state-owned land" which meant it automatically was transferred from the Jordanian to the Israeli government.
At first Israel did not use it for anything but within a few years they installed a small military camp. Shortly after they built housing for soldiers, and during the Second Intifada (in 1987) they decided to establish it as military headquarters. This meant it was the place where the people of Beit Sahour had to go to in order to do anything, such as apply for permits, including work permits, to pay taxes, and all other regular civilian activities. The people of Beit Sahour refused to recognize the area as military headquarters. During the Second Intifada (in 2001) the military used the camp to shoot at people in Beit Sahour until about 3 years ago when the Israeli army decided to pull out. While the army was still there, however, the settlers decided that this was Israeli land and they began making plans to build a settlement to connect it with the nearby settlements around Mount Herodium (under Israeli control) and Efrat.
The settlers are still demanding this today. When the army pulled out a few years ago, the settlers protested heavily, claiming that it was their land, and they forced the army to build a watchtower. So although the watchtower and soliders are back at the camp based on the demands of the settlers, the army continues to tell the Palestinian mayor that it is there to protect the land FROM the settlers. With the help of USAID in order to protect the land, the Palestinians built a community center, Ush Gharab, which in English means the Crow's Nest. According to the Israelis, it is their land, but the US paid for it knowing that the military was against building the center. Based on this Jiries said most people believe that USAID made an agreement with Israel that they will give the people of Beit Sahour a couple acres for the community center in exchange for giving the entire mountain to Israel. Guarded by the military, settlers are granted protected access to the camp every Friday so that they can pray in the land they believe is rightfully theirs.
Within this blog I have tried so far (not always successfully, I will admit) to present to my audience what I have seen and heard here, while keeping my personal political commentary to a minimum. Although the fact that I am living in Palestine with a Palestinian family might expose me as inherently biased, I would like to verify that I am firmly pro-peace, not pro- one country or the other. Although I may not agree with certain perspectives, I am interested in learning more about them in order to establish a well-grounded opinion and also to get to the root of the psychological motives that largely characterize this conflict. Its one thing to be wherever you are reading this, living vicariously through my descriptions of people and places, but this blog cannot convey the way that the Israeli woman's voice was drenched with utter hate and disgust when she talked about "the Arabs". I guess what I am trying to say is that I don't know how to describe her without demonizing her and seemingly injecting my own opinion.
Here are some excerpts from the brochure she gave us, I am typing almost all of it up because I really think it is worth reading. It is pretty disturbing:
"Thursday-Fridays at Shdema: An Eretz Israel Experience of study in Gush Etzion this July (picture of an Israeli flag on the side of a mountain).
Why at Shdema?
Shdema is an army base, between the Jerusalem neighborhood of Har Homa and the community of Tekoa in Eastern Gush Etzion. Shdema is in Israeli-controlled Area C. The base was abandoned in 2006, and was in danger of being transferred to the Arab enemy, aided by international anti-Israel organizations. After a prolonged battle by the Committee for a Jewish Shdema and the Women for Israel's Tomorrow (Women in Green) movement, in cooperation with the Gush Etzion Regional Council, and elements from across the entire political spectrum, the IDF returned to Shdema, and established an outpost at the top of the hill.
In order to support and strengthen the military presence, we continue to come to Shdema every month, and therefore we will also conduct out triple Thursday-Friday July seminar in Shdema.
This year, we want to devote the classes and lectures to the destructive consequences of the "peace" process, while looking at and to the leadership that will bring the people of Israel to a believing and a national future.
The gatherings are dedicated to the full recovery of all sick people of Am Yisrael, and among them Rabbi Moshe Levinger and Rabbi Hanan Porat- the trailblazers and leaders of the renewed settlement enterprise throughout Eretz Israel.
We invite all of Am Yisrael to join in out Shdema seminar. Your participation will strengthen the moral demand for our right to Eretz Israel.
With love for Israel,
The Committee for a Jewish Shdema, etc."
On the inside is the itinerary for the "seminar"- it is broken up into 3 days:
1. The Destructive Results of the 'Peace' Process
-Introductory remarks by Rabbi Moshe Levinger, the father of the renewed settlement enterprise
-"Facing the American Challenge," by Yossi Ben-Aharon, bureau chief ofPrime Minister Yitzhak Shamir
-"The Changes in Jewish Arab Relations in Israel," Dr. Motti Keidar
-"The Peace Process Corrupts," Arye Klein from Hebron, Eretz Israel researcher and tour guide
-tour of the fence and the "economic" peace.
2. Leadership
-"The Power of Vision," lecture by Haya Harel, editor of Theodore Hertzl's writings
-"Joshua: The Image of a Leader"
-The movie Hitna'ari, a penetrating introspective of the expulsion from Gush Katif and northern Samaria
-"What is Wise Leadership- that who Foresees What Will Be," Professor Eliav Shochetman, expert on Jewish law
3. The Next Generation
-"How to Turn Things Around, for the Good?" Emanuel Shiloh, editor of Besheva newspaper
-"On Meeting with the Stira Ahra (the Devil) Face On," Bezalel Smutritch, Regavim organization, dedicated to saving the national lands
-"Abba Ahimer: The Power of the National Spirit"
-"How Does the Next Generation Assume Leadership"
So that is the brochure. I found "facing the devil" and "the destructive peace process" to be interesting names for seminars; its too bad that all lectures will be held in Hebrew. It is really late so I am going to bed. Tomorrow Jiries, Jiries, Maureen and I are going to Jerusalem for the day to walk around. Its too bad that Tata Huda can't come, she loves Jersusalem and spending time with her family. Unfortunately, along with all other Palestinians, she is a security threat to Israel.
Pictured above: the "Arab enemy" that is trying to steal Israel's land.
Right.
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