dealing with demolition orders

My contact (I'll call him Hassan) took me to a meeting called by the Governor of Hebron Province. When demolition orders are issued the people concerned need to know what to do - ignoring it is fatal. And the first person they'd go to would be their community leader. So all the community leaders had been called so they'd know the tortuous process the Israelis use, and therefore be able to give the right advice. Slides were shown of a demolition order (which apparently is often purposely left under a rock or stone, so that it can be missed). Then there's the announcement in the paper (but written in such small tight script you could overlook it, even if you did buy the correct copy of the newspaper, which you probably wouldn't). The person receiving the order then needs to take it to the court; the meeting was given a list of legal firms which would do the work for free. It's all frighteningly efficient within the Israeli legal system. 

Hassan has huge respect for the Governor who said at the end of the meeting that it was critical this information was available to everyone. He (the Governor) said he'd called the meeting for all community leaders, and unless those who'd failed to turn up had an acceptable excuse, he'd come down hard on them. 

Hassan added that he couldn't bear to work in East Jerusalem where house demolitions are a daily occurrence. There the owner is fined for having an 'illegal' property and has the choice of either demolishing his/her own home or paying the costs of bulldozers, trucks, police etc, AND the cost of removing the rubble. So some people demolish their own homes rather than have this financial burden as well!

South Hebron Hills

This is a Zone C area in the occupied West Bank which means it's under the control of the Israelis. They've deemed it a military zone and are trying to remove the indigenous population (mainly Bedouin) from the land by demolishing their dwellings. At the same time they're building settlements. In the top photo if you look closely you'll see on the skyline a settlement which has electricity and therefore air conditioning etc, running water and swimming pools for some and all the things you'd expect in the 21st Century. Out of view there's a large white building which houses the chickens they raise as part of the settlement's economy. The chickens also have electricity, temperature-controlled environment, piped water and food. On the slope just below the settlement you'll see a cluster of small shacks. This is the Bedouin community. It's only very recently they've acquired electricity from solar panels as they weren't allowed to use the posts and wires running through the village. Demolitions are on-going.

Here's the school for Bedouin children, paid for by funds raised by caring people. You'll see the wind's so fierce the awning's ripped to shreds. But the murals are jolly. On the opposite side of the road/track is a firing zone.

Then we drove to the school at Khashem Al Daraj. The school's large enough to take 32 children and you can see it's jolly and has its own playground. (Apparently some older children were using the slides and swings as they'd never had access to such things). A team of four or five stayed at the school for several days to paint the murals, using the children's hand prints for some of the patterns. Parents can't afford even small amounts towards the cost of teachers hence the ongoing need to raise funds. The previous school could take only 6 children and had no toilet. 

Bedouin economy is pastoral and the women make cheese from the milk. The milk is poured into a goat skin and then shaken by hand for hour upon hour. Solar panels enable the milk separation to take place without labour, thus allowing the women to do other things. Electricity also means dairy products can stay fresh and get to market, improving the economy. A nursery means the children are cared for allowing the mothers time for themselves and the chance to do other things.

We then drove to another community where our guide said the next thing needed there was a tarmac surface for the track. And at another community he said a school was needed here too. The scenery was  breathtaking.

getting to Hebron

Flew to Amman as it's cheaper than flying to Tel Aviv, spent a day there wandering around ruined Roman temples and climbing an incredibly steep Roman theatre. Amman sprawls over hills and has virtually no public transport so the roads are clogged by tens of thousands of cars, most of which seem to be taxis. Jordanians are charming and friendly and every other one seems to be a Palestinian. Here are a couple of photos.

Caught the bus the next day to King Hussein Crossing (Allenby Bridge), and what a spectacular drive it was down and down to the Jordan Valley. Then through the Jordanian side (lots of stamping of passport etc), across the bridge to the Israeli side. Was expecting it to be similar in tone to Tel Aviv i.e. unsmiling and suspicious, but not at all. Very friendly if rather chaotic, lots of smiles and waved through. If anyone reading this wants the detail of the trip in terms of visas, where to get the bus/shared taxi etc, just let me know. It's rather complicated and each side has specific demands.

One night and a day in Jerusalem staying in the Austrian Hospice. Could see out of my window on Friday morning a group of Christians processing down the Via Dolorosa chanting to Jesus to bless them when they got to his Kingdom just as twenty to thirty Israeli police/army/riot police gathered in the same spot to wait 'in readiness' to quell any trouble from Muslims going to or from Al Aqsa Mosque.  It's got to be the most (un)holy place on earth! Here's the view from the Hospice roof.

Jerusalem to Bethlehem by very expensive taxi as all the roads were blocked (although no one knew why), through the checkpoint and on to Beit Sahour for a night and a delightful welcome from Milada at the Arab Women's Union Al Beit Guesthouse. Then next days final leg to Hebron to meet my contact. I've described the situation in Hebron in an earlier post (from 2009). Little has changed, if anything it's worse.