From Bethlehem to Jerusalem

Last week, I attended a seminar for Dr. Mazin Qumsiyeh, a Christian Palestinian Professor currently living in occupied Bethlehem. Dr. Mazin is author of the book "Sharing the Land of Canaan". I enjoyed his seminar as he discussed the early beginnings of the Zionism movement and the early Jewish settlements in Palestine in the 1800's. He also talked about the real source of the Arab - Israeli conflict which is Zionism.

Below are Dr. Mazin’s thoughts while entering Jerusalem for the first time in 4 years. By the way, I was in Jerusalem last July and the trip from Jerusalem to Bethlehem was only 10 minutes away by car. I was lucky to be in an Israeli plate car so the drive was quick, but for Palestinians who are born there, it's another situation, they are foreigners in their own land!

Note: While reading, imagine yourself a person born in the USA and driving from New Jersey to New York in your country.

"I entered Jerusalem through the apartheid wall yesterday without using the
temporary "Israeli permit" that was issued to me (and that expired
yesterday). My family had applied for me and many others through our church
for the Eastern Christian Holidays. Yet, those who could enter like I did
(with or without permits) are a tiny fraction of the Palestinian population.
I have not been in Jerusalem in nearly four years due to Israeli
restrictions.


Leaving Bethlehem, an Israeli check point


Sieged Bethlehem, the birthplace of Jesus Christ and home of many Christian Palestinians


Sieged Bethlehem, overview outside the city, just 10 minutes away from Jerusalem! Palestinians going from Bethlehem to Ramallah take another road for "Palestinians Only" and are forbidden to enter Jerusalem unless they have a permit!

On the drive along the Hebron road, we first pass by side roads leading to
the colonies built since 1967 on Palestinian lands (illegal per
International law): things now called Ramat Rachel, Gilo, and Har Homa. We
pass by land that was leased (for 99 years!) from our Greek Orthodox Church
by tricks and a corrupt church official to develop Israeli malls and
housing. We then enter the "neighborhoods" of Amona and Talpiot that used
to be Arab Palestinians before 1948 and see many old Palestinian homes that
were taken over by Zionists and their residents. Charming old Arab houses
with arched balconies sit lonely amid massive development of European style
architecture. I wonder what their Jewish residents think of living in such
structures. I wonder if even they know what life is like just three miles
south in the refugee camps in Bethlehem.

To the right, we pass by the road leading to Silwan. A Palestinian
neighborhood that is increasingly threatened with total eviction to create a
"natural park". I think of the three Palestinian villages (including the
biblical Imwas ) that were removed in 1967 to create later "Canada Park"; to
honor Canadian Jews and others who donated to plant non-native trees where
homes and agricultural land once existed. Many homes have already been
demolished in Silwan, Wadi Al Joz and Israeli digging under Silwan is
resulting in collapse of homes and infrastructures (and occasionally
injuries to residents like when an UNRWA school floor collapsed injusring
two students).

Then we moved up the hill to the old city. I remember walking these roads
and roaming around the area when I taught in Jerusalem in 1978 and 1979 (at
Schmidt Girls College). Nostalgia at seeing familiar structures and
buildings (the old YMCA, the schools, the American Consulate, the Churches
and mosques) is mixed with apprehension at seeing the scarring that
destroyed many other familiar landmarks. The city I think will slowly become
totally unrecognizable. It will become like an extension of Tel Aviv
(except populated with more religious Jews). Now I realize cities do change
in time. But this is different. Jerusalem was a city that is multi-ethnic
and multi-religious. Many occupiers tried to change its character by force
(Persians, Romans, Byzantines, Ottomans, British, etc) but the people of the
city have always clung to traditions and resisted changes. And there were
only two periods were there was massive ethnic cleansing: a) when the
crusaders came in the middle ages (removing and killing local Eastern
Orthodox, Jewish, and Muslim residents), and b) in 1948 when Western Jerusalem was completely cleared of Palestinian residents (some 23,000 born before Jan 1948 and now the total refugees from that part of the city is 93,000, see data in http://www.jerusalemquarterly.org/images/ArticlesPdf/3_Jerusalem%2048.pdf ) and concomitantly nearly 2000 Jews removed from Eastern Jerusalem. The old Jewish quarter has always been Muslim Waqf land whose residents before 1948 paid rent to. For data on population changes through historic Palestine, see http://www.palestineremembered.com/Acre/Palestine-Remembered/Story559.html .

At this point, I know some will say that ethnic cleansing was done by the
Romans when "the Jews" were expelled following the Bar Kokhba revolt. But
historically this is not true. First, there was no such thing as the Jews
but residents of Judea who were referred to as Judeans (in Arabic, Hebrew,
and Aramaic variations on Yahudi best translated as Judean not Jew). These
Judeans practiced different religions including many pagan traditions. Some
religions were shared by other Palestinians (e.g. monotheistic traditions
shared between some Samaritans and some Judeans). The revolt by radical
Pharisee elements was against the Roman appointed Herod dynasty (Herod, of
Idumean background, was considered kind of the Judeans). These radical
elements were the ones who were removed from Jerusalem, not the Judean
population. Judeans in Jerusalem at the time who continued to live there
included many who believed in Baal, YHW/Yahweh, and El/El Elyon (Elohim in Hebrew, Alla in Aramaic, Allah and Arabic), and the nascent Christian
tradition (and later ofcourse many adopted Islam). The languages spoken
included not only Greek and Latin but various dialects of Aramaic including
those that are recognizable Arabic and spoken Hebrew dialects (although the
latter was mostly for religious rituals). Many forget that the Arabic
alphabet evolved here in the Holy Land from Nebatean Proto Aramaic!

But more modern history is sad because we experience it. Just last year
alone 4600 Palestinians lost their right to live in their own city including
some of my friends. Some 150 Palestinian homes were demolished. I also
talked yesterday with a colleague in Sheikh Jarrah neighborhood of Jerusalem
whose family was evicted and the home taken over by radical settlers. I
give a lecture on Mount Scopus; land that partly belonged to the
Jerusalemite Khalidi and other families and has been taken over under
Israel's "laws" of "absentee property". As the Palestinian nature of this
old city continues to be under attack, it has been slowly being transforned
to a European city with an Ashkenazi Jewish Zionist character. Its eastern
charm is now replaced by business, commerce, etc that is to serve the
privileged segment of the society.

In the UN partition plan of 1947, Jerusalem was to become an International
city open to all. My hope is that with thousands of activists (increasing
daily) who engage in the struggle for peace with justice, Palestinian
refugees will be allowed to return to West Jerusalem and those displaced
from East Jerusalem also returned (just like the Jewish quarter was
re-populated). That the city then really become an international city with
full equality anda truth an reconciliation committee established just like
happened in South Africa. Jerusalem would then become a "shiny city on the
hill" and its people "a light unto the people" (mistranslated "light unto
the nations")."

You can visit Dr. Mazin Website at (http://qumsiyeh.org/)