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Harvesting Peace - Reports from Palestine

Below are reports from the volunteers of the Harvesting Peace project, an Italian civilian peace intervention project in Palestine to support the olive harvest and the work of Popular Struggle Coordination Committee. The project is promoted by Service Civil International - Italy, Association for Peace and Un Ponte Per. Volunteers provided international accompaniment for four weeks in the village of Jeb al Theeb near Bethlehem, under threat from the nearby illegal settlements and settlers.

‘I am strong. We resist': An interview in the village of Jeb al Theeb

Sitting in one of the houses of Jeb al Theeb, a small village south of Bethlehem, a Palestinian woman describes the living conditions. She is a teacher but in the darkness it is difficult to determine her age. Her home, just as the entire village, is without electricity. The only light that arrives comes from the mega-illumination of the adjacent settlements of El David, Nokdim, and Sde bar.

Can you tell us more about life here in the village?
Jeb al Theeb is a simple Palestinian village inhabited by 150 people, most of whom are young. We don't have many older people here. The village lacks all types of basic infrastructure and the only roads are unsuitable for cars, forcing the people to travel on foot. There is no school, the children must walk a long way to the nearest one, even in winter with the rains. We no longer have access to our land, shepherds cannot graze their sheep in the pastures and children cannot play in the fields. We have no electricity and therefore cannot use computers or television. The children are unable to study after school, and, as you can see, at 5pm it is already dark. Studying by candlelight creates problems with their eyesight.

» Read the full interview on Mondoweiss

The Israeli military left it to settlers to monitor Palestinian farmers during the olive harvest

Jeb al Theeb, a small West Bank village south of Bethlehem, is under constant threat by the illegal Israeli settlements surrounding it. The small house we called home for a month had a view of the so-called Lieberman Road, which connects Jerusalem with the settlement of Nokdim, where Israeli Foreign Minister Avigdor Lieberman lives, and the settlement of Tekoa. Construction in these two settlements continued during the partial settlement freeze, while the Palestinians in the area, as in many other cases throughout the West Bank, were not permitted to build houses or roads allowing access to their land.

On our first day in Jeb al Theeb as part of an Italian civilian peace intervention project during the olive harvest things were already hot.

Four of us were accompanying two of the village farmers to their olive trees, when before even reaching their land we were stopped by two armed settlers who immediately called for reinforcements. Within minutes two jeeps with IDF soldiers as well as border police arrived, which then grew to be roughly 20 soldiers as several more jeeps arrived on the scene.

» Read the full report on Mondoweiss

The calm strength of a Palestinian woman

Umm Khaled, at first glance, is a Palestinian woman like many others: black clothing drapes over her body and head, her face marked by the years making her look older than she probably is. Yet this woman, who according to Western stereotypes should be ignorant and submissive in an oppressive patriarchal society, possesses an uncommon strength, a strength that only those who have known suffering, yet face difficulties with their heads held high, possess.

» Read the full report on Mondoweiss

‘We are not in Israel’: Close encounters at the entrance to the Nokdim Settlement

A Palestinian family living in Bethlehem but originally from the village of Jeb al Theeb contacted our group of volunteers asking for help in harvesting olives on their land adjacent to the settlement of Nokdim, home to Israeli FM Avigdor Lieberman. For the past ten years they have been forbidden to access or cultivate the land. We immediately agreed to help and at dawn the following day twelve men from the family, young and old, came for the five of us. They showed us a document in Hebrew, dated June 17, 2010, certifying ownership of the property. Equipped with video and digital cameras, we were ready to get involved in helping defend their rights.

» Read the full report on Mondoweiss

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