MIFTAH
Friday, 29 March. 2024
 
Your Key to Palestine
The Palestinian Initiatives for The Promotoion of Global Dialogue and Democracy
 
 
 

I attended a social evening with a group of Israeli peace activists a few days ago. The guests were impressive for their sincerity and their commitment to justice. Young people had served jail sentences for refusing to serve in the army. Older people had supported them and encouraged them in their refusal to be part of the Occupation forces.

A semi-retired journalist told stories of the treatment he has received at the Tel Aviv airport. Several times he was detained for hours, frisked, questioned in special little rooms, made to miss his flight at least once, and his luggage Xrayed both full and empty.

Then a friend told him: "You are on one of their lists for sure." The papers recently talked about lists of activists compiled by Israeli security, but official spokepersons denied the existence of the lists. Of course. The journalist then asked the security people what he had done to be on the non-existing list that everyone knew about. "The only thing I know I did was stop killing Palestinians. Is this the crime that put me on your list? If I started killing Palestinians again, would my name be taken off the list? and would my travels than be easier?" Security did not think worth answering his questions.

The friend finally went on to suggest that the journalist tell the airport security people that indeed his name was on a list, and maybe that would speed things up. So the next time he traveled, he took a security person aside and whispered to him: "I am on the list, you know." And low and behold, he was cleared in half the time. At the next trip, he used the same strategy, and he was cleared almost without delay. And recently he was told by a security person that his name is no longer on the list. The list that does not exist.

Then two days ago, I went through the Beith Hanina checkpoint, only to be made to wait with a few dozen people for permission to pass. There was an officer in charge, who seemed to delight in keeping soldiers from checking people's IDs and thus prolong the wait for all of us.

Finally my turn came, and after being cleared, I looked for the officer. "Are you the officer in charge?" I asked. He said yes. "Do you speak English?" I asked. He said yes again. "Then I want to tell you that what you are doing here is outrageous. Outrageous! You have enough soldiers here to clear people as they come up to the checkpoint, and instead they are made to wait hours. For nothing. What you are doing here is shameful!" At which point, he turned his back on me and walked away, saying something in Hebrew to the little group of soldiers standing a couple of feet away. I imagined him to say: "Watch for this impertinent American and give her a hard time next time." But that was my imagination. Or was it?

The next time I came through the same checkpoint, a teenager with a rifle cleared me without even looking at my passport. So I stopped about ten feet away to watch a group of Palestinians being made to come down from a minibus and wait for their IDs to be returned to them. Three officers were chatting among themselves. Then one of them looked at me and motioned me to come. I looked through him and did not move. He motioned to me again. "If you want me, Baby, you will have to come and get me." I thought to myself, remembering with a couple of butterflies in my stomach that a CPTer was arrested for watching soldiers at a checkpoint. His presence "interfered with the work of security" was the claim. The officer motioned to me a third time, at which point I turned my back and walked away. He did not chase me.

These are the games, cat and mouse games. Games where our only victories are small moral victories, where the occupiers always have the upper hand, can always find an excuse to shout, to humiliate, to ridicule, to marginalize, to deny basic human rights.

 
 
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