This Friday Michigan Peace Team (MPT) members Peter and Beth participated in two demonstrations in the Bethlehem area, which confronted the Palestinian land seizures. MPT has been to both villages for protests previously. The Bethlehem area organizes demonstrations every Friday, and the location rotates between four different villages.

The first demonstration was held in the morning at Wadi An Nis, a village south of Bethlehem. About 60 Palestinians, Israelis and Internationals met together on land scheduled for confiscation and then marched toward the area where the illegal wall is being constructed. As expected, we were stopped by an estimated 30 armed Israeli soldiers.

The demonstration organizers had explained to us that there were three ways in which activists could participate: front line (which involves more risk); support; and taking pictures/documenting the events.  Beth and Peter decided to be in the front line. A number of times our line of Palestinians and Internationals linked arms and attempted to walk forward to the Palestinian-owned land, with the soldiers bodily preventing us. We were pushed, kneed and kicked backwards. At one point things got so rough, that Beth’s camera, which was strapped across her chest, was torn from the strap and fell to the ground.  In between these attempts activists tried to dialogue with the soldiers, but received little response.

Peter reminded the soldiers that they can resist serving in the army, and that many Israeli soldiers have done so. He also said, “We are all human-beings, and I respect you Israeli soldiers, and I also respect these Palestinians. You soldiers are good people doing bad things”. Other activists made appeals to the soldiers also. One international activist got out his map of Israel and Palestine. He showed the soldiers where they were on the map and said, “See this does not say Israel; you are currently on Palestinian land”. Many people relayed to the soldiers that occupation is not security for Israel.

The Palestinian man who owned the land we were attempting to reach was treated very inhumanely by the soldiers. He was first spit on by one of the soldiers in the line. Then, he was detained. A group of soldiers had gone behind the line of demonstrators and snatched the man away from the line. Many internationals grabbed onto, and attempted to “puppy-pile” on the Palestinian so that he would not be arrested and taken away by the soldiers. When Beth joined the pile she was pushed onto the ground, as were some others. After being helped up by another protestor, she tried again to grab onto the man. However, the soldiers ripped the activists away from the Palestinian, handcuffed him and took him away to an unknown location.

We continued to protest for a while, and then the organizer said we had done our demonstrating and would now go. On their way back, Peter and Beth agreed that there is a chance that some of the soldiers would reflect later on the comments they heard from the demonstrators.

During the afternoon we traveled to the village of Artas to resist the construction of a sewage system for an illegal settlement that is being built on confiscated Palestinian land. MPT took a service (collective taxi) with members of other organizations including EAPPI (Ecumenical Accompaniment Programme in Palestine and Israel), Holy Land Trust, and Middle East Nonviolence and Democracy.

When we walked down the path towards the site, we had to climb over two earth mounds that had been placed there to prevent Palestinian vehicles from passing. Beth was overwhelmed and distraught by the progress of construction that had happened since the last time she was there. Along our way, our procession was stopped by a line of soldiers. There were about ten of them, as well as a number of soldiers atop the hill who pointed their rifles at us throughout the demonstration.

The Palestinians appealed to the soldiers to let us pass, but the soldiers would not allow it. At this time, the owner of the land we were attempting to reach, whom we will call Hisham, made an extremely powerful appeal to the soldiers. He explained that we were attempting to reach his land nonviolently. He caringly described his land and shared personal reminiscences saying, “Over there are olive trees and over there fruit trees”. He also said, “Two months ago I was down there [pointing to his land], and I offered you soldiers coffee and you drank it with me.” Then he pointed to three different soldiers and said, “You were there and you were there, and you were there. You said that you were here to protect us. And today you are refusing to let me go to my land”.

Following Hisham’s words, one older Palestinian man also spoke. Peter then spoke as well. He apologized to the Palestinians for what our U.S. government is doing—giving $3 billion a year to fund the occupation of Palestinian land. He compared the current situation of the Palestinians to that of the Native Americans when the U.S. army took their land, killed their people and called them savages. “We are all human beings worthy of respect and the cycle of violence must stop”.

As we ended this nonviolent act of resistance, Hisham said we had given our message and declared, “I promise, I will be back on my land.”