Palestine and the subtleties of living under occupation

As I prepared for my HNGR internship in the West Bank this past semester, there were things that I didn't know how to prepare for. In many ways, Palestinians in the West Bank and Gaza face some unique challenges that are difficult to understand or even recognize. Hanging over all of these challenges they face is the continuing Israeli occupation of Palestinian land. This in and of itself is not, and should not be, a controversial statement. Israel took East Jerusalem and the West Bank after the 1967 war, and has been occupying it ever since. This is why when you look on a map, you don't see a country of Palestine. Instead, you only see the West Bank and Gaza.

However, things get a bit more complicated once you realize that Israel has not been simply occupying Palestine for the past 40+ years. In fact, Israel has explicitly been violating international law by moving its own population into the West Bank. In Article 49 of the Fourth Geneva Convention, it states: "The Occupying Power shall not deport or transfer parts of its own civilian population into the territory it occupies." However, there are now an estimated 500,000 Israelis living throughout the West Bank. Most of these Israelis live in areas called settlements, which are large compounds or cities usually built on the tops of hills overlooking the Palestinian population. Not only are these settlements clearly illegal, but there are also significant ramifications on the quality of life of Palestinians in the West Bank as a result. You see, once Israel establishes a settlement, it takes every step possible to "protect" the Israeli settlers from the surrounding Palestinians. Therefore, walls are built, roads are rerouted.. you get the idea. This means that there are an increasing number of roads and areas that Palestinians cannot use. Imagine using a certain road to go to work everyday for twenty years and one day being stopped by an Israeli soldier and being prohibited to enter because there is now an illegal Israeli settlement close by. This is a daily reality for millions of Palestinians. There is a large Israeli settlement on a hill overlooking Bethlehem that I see everyday when I am at the office. I cannot imagine how that must weigh on the Palestinians here as they are constantly reminded of their lack of control over their own land and the ability of the Israelis to do whatever they want.

Sadly, this isn't even the half of it. Legal experts nearly unanimously agree that Israel is in violation of international law and needs to stop any further transfer of its population to the West Bank and pull out its current population there. However, the United States continues to stubbornly trumpet its support of Israel, politically and economically. This past May, President Obama spoke to the AIPAC conference (the largest Jewish lobby in the U.S.) and two days later, Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu spoke to the U.S. Congress, receiving numerous standing ovations. How can this be? They might be difficult for some of you to swallow, but I have talked to a few people about some of the more cynical reasons why the U.S. continues to support Israel in the face of its illegal activity and brutal suppression of the Palestinian people.
1. The Israelis look like us. Most Israelis look white European, are highly educated, and live a "Western" lifestyle similar to those found in the U.S. On the other hand, Palestinians are that continually-alien group, the Arabs, and are often perceived as all Muslims. They often look darker-skinned, come from a more conservative lifestyle and culture, and are not as wealthy as most Israelis.
2. Israel is America's strategic ally in a region where the U.S. does not want to lose influence. Plainly put: oil. Israel allows us to continue to have a presence in an area where America has a lot to lose, economically and militarily.

Besides the Israeli settlements, there is another obvious physical reminder of the Israeli occupation of the West Bank: the separation wall. Although Israel says that the wall is only for self-defense, most people know that it must be for more than that. To help you understand the size of the wall, I will compare it to the size of the Berlin Wall before it was torn down. The average height of the concrete parts of the Berlin Wall were almost 4 meters high. The concrete parts of the Israel wall, like the wall around Bethlehem, are usually over 8 meters high. I have stood next to the separation wall, and it is truly a frightening thing to crane my neck all the way back and barely be able to see the top of the wall. Also, so far the separation wall has brought around 12% of Palestinian land onto the Israeli side. In fact, Israel built part of the wall right through the middle of my family's land. When my family, with the help of Holy Land Trust, peacefully protested the illegal construction of the wall through their land, Israeli soldiers beat my mom and put some Holy Land Trust protesters in prison. Now, part of my family's land lies behind a huge concrete wall that Israel built.

As an American at least by my citizenship, it has been difficult to witness these different signs of oppression of the Palestinians and be aware of how my tax dollars have helped finance them. Since WWII, Israel has been the largest recipient of U.S. economic aid. The U.S. usually gives Israel over $3 billion a year, although lately this has been increasing. This is around 1/5 of the total U.S. foreign aid budget. This makes all Americans involved in the Israeli occupation of the West Bank and Gaza, whether they want to be or not.

I know this was a lot, but these are some of the things I have been thinking about but avoiding writing down for the past couple of weeks. It is difficult to decide what to write about and risk simplifying the issue, but I think these are important for all of you, my friends and family, to know about and be aware of. Although I know I wrote mostly about Israeli faults in this post, as a follower of Christ I seek reconciliation and peace above all. There is blame to go around to all parties involved. But now my hands are tired and my brain is slowing down. Thanks for your prayers and interest in my life.

Til next time.