Bill and Peter took part in the two demonstrations in the Bethlehem District held Friday August 3.

The first was in Artas in the mid-morning. We took a taxi to Artas, and the driver was grateful we were doing this in solidarity with Palestinians. He said to give him whatever we wanted to pay him. We asked the going rate, and paid him that.

We found a small group of people gathering in the village, and joined them. Awad, whom Peter recognized from the previous Artas demonstration was there. He is the president of the Artas Committee Against The Wall. He is one of the landowners whose property has been seized by the Israeli government. With him was a man from the town who had been shot in the leg by Israeli soldiers on November 1, 2000. Because the injury was so severe, he had to be taken to Germany for surgeries. Still, one leg is shorter than the other.
 

While waiting for about an hour, we met several internationals from various organizations, including Israelis.  A large tour bus arrived with an added fifty people, arranged by Sami Awad of Holy Land Trust (HLT) in Bethlehem. About 20 of those were a delegation of Christian Peacemaker Teams (CPT) with their distinctive red caps. We then walked through the town, and many local people joined the march to the site of the seized lands.
 

The group grew to about 150, and the Israeli military was taken by surprise by our presence. We were able to go right to the site of Awad’s former 48 peach trees in the valley.  He had been expelled from his land recently, on May 20, and this was the first time since then that he stood on the site. The soldiers did not have time to come down from the hill above and prevent our entering the valley. They remained there, near the bulldozers being used for the construction of a road and bridge connecting the nearby Israeli settlements.
 

The foundation of the bridge is under construction, and stands on the site of Awad’s former peach trees. Awad spoke in English, with passion, declaring that this is still his family’s land. He has the ownership papers from 1946 to prove it.
 

He explained that when this bridge is built, the nearby four Israeli settlements will begin sending their waste water down through this valley. It will destroy the whole land for many kilometers. The four settlements, Allon Shevut, Efrata, Daniyyel, and Etzion, are located high on hills along the valley. Four new settlements are being planned, which will also use this valley to dispose of their waste water. The Palestinians have taken their case to the Israeli court, and are awaiting its decision.

Sami Awad of HLT also spoke. An Israeli activist said these soldiers can refuse to serve in the military on Palestinian land. The penalty for not doing so is nothing like the guilt they have to live with for the rest of their lives.

Several of us then traveled to Al Walaja, west of Bethlehem, for the early afternoon demonstration at the site of the planned Separation Wall.

We were pleasantly surprised by the number of participants, about 250. Many Israeli soldiers were lined up along the fence on the site, with several military vehicles. As we arrived, an Imam was chanting a Friday Muslim prayer. Many demonstrators were enthusiastically waving Palestinian flags. The mayor of Al Walaja spoke to the crowd in Arabic. Then the Muslim men lined up to pray for some time. During the prayer, they stood, bowed, got on their knees, and prostrated themselves. It was an impressive and reverent part of the demonstration..

After the prayer, a member of the Al Walaja village council spoke in Arabic. Then we all marched along the fence about a quarter of a mile to an intersection. A woman then spoke in Arabic. The demonstration then ended. There was no confrontation during the event between soldiers and demonstrators.

There was no confrontation during the event between soldiers and demonstrators.