Ramallah, West Bank–It’s a far cry from the daily checkpoints, beatings, tear-gassing and harassment that Palestinians have to go through, but today I can say that a tiny slice of the Palestinian experience became alive to me.
My arrival at Ben-Gurion airport in Tel Aviv, Israel early today was the start of a long trip down Israeli security harassment lane. After I showed my passport to an Israeli immigration agent, I was taken to a holding room, where I joined Palestinians trying to visit family and other–mostly non-white–people. Three hours later, I was taken to a separate room, where I was questioned by a bald Israeli who said he was from the Ministry of Defense.
They immediately knew that my back story of why I came to Israel was false, and I had to admit I planned on visiting the West Bank.
After that came questions about my trip last year to Gaza, who I met with there, what I wanted to do in the West Bank and what the delegation I joined today was all about. Absurdly, the defense official hinted that I was suspected of “terrorism”–the term used by Israel and the U.S. to smear anyone who dissents against their inhumane policies of occupation and war. The agent also was curious to find out why I–as a Jew–was on the “Palestinian side,” working “against my homeland and my father’s,” to which I responded that Israel is not my homeland, and that I was for the human rights of all people, including Palestinians. While these questions were fired at me, pictures of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and President Shimon Peres stared down at me, as if to mock me.
I was sent back to the holding room without my passport, where I spent the rest of my time sleeping, watching Curb Your Enthusiasm (a perfect mood-lifter) and messaging Israeli blogger Didi Remez over Twitter with updates on what was going on.
Five hours later, after I thought I was to be deported or detained, I was let out of the grasp of Israeli security on the condition that I not enter the Palestinian territories. As I drove to Ramallah, I passed by countless West Bank settlements–with their gleaming lights–and Palestinian villages surrounded by the illegal colonies. There was no discernible difference between Israel proper and settlement areas over the Green Line, something that I marveled at even though I knew that was the case.
And now I’m here, back in Palestine after one year. One can only be amazed that the Palestinian people remain so strong and steadfast after enduring 62 years of Israeli security harassment far worse than what I went through today.
Alex Kane is a blogger and journalist based in New York City. He blogs on Israel/Palestine and Islamophobia in the U.S. at alexbkane.wordpress.com. Follow him on Twitter here.
“One can only be amazed that the Palestinian people remain so strong and steadfast after enduring 62 years of Israeli security harassment far worse than what I went through today.” The comparison of Palestinians with African-Americans after the end of Reconstruction begin to multiply. There are differences of course with the U.S. having a national government, on paper i.e. constitutionally, committed to equal rights. But the tolerance of the discriminated against should be emphasized. Zionist Israel has the “wall” the U.S. had “sun-down” towns. [Google Jim Loewen for his book]. The more I learn about what the Zionists Israeli government/state is doing the more despicable “Jim Crowy” and “Apartheidy” it looks. Before I knew what it was doing it was always “brave little democratic Israel” in a “fight for its life”. That simply isn’t true [if it ever was]. My mind has been changed by the facts. Were the U.S. to turn off the money flow, the Zionists would get very reasonable very quickly. 100 billion in U.S. taxpayer dollars since 1948 is the most accurate measure I can find. That doesn’t count “deductibles” in the U.S. tax code which is a subsidy also.
“Were the U.S. to turn off the money flow, the Zionists would get very reasonable very quickly.”
Fat chance! If the US turns off the money, then Israel might as well throw nuclear bombs at all those “22 Arab countries” or even anti-semitic Europe before they go bad from lack of maintenance.
Masadadammerung, bubele!
Alex: An interesting question; would they have let you visit the West Bank settlements/colonies if you had friends or relatives there? Since the Green Line no longer exists, how can they tell where you are actually going?
Essentially, not being a Zionist Jew is “terrorism.”
Glad you made it.
I was held at Ben-Gurion fir an hour only. I had book with me for reading on the flight. The girl questioning me asked to see it -”You have book on Israel?”
I was relieved on my reading choice when I was able to show them a biography of Robespierre. I had considered taking Finkelstein’s ‘Beyond Chutzpah’. I was the only white person detained among our group. The poor Irish girl who had an Egyptian father who had bequeathed on her not only a suspect name, but lovely carmel skin was detained for four hours. Which the rest of us passed in the cafe waiting for her. I have heard tales of them demanding to see your email account before they’ll let you in. Not sure about that one, could be urban legend.
‘Why are you on the Palestinian side, working against your homeland?’
“Your homeland” You mean, they offered you a couple of free acres of Israeli land? And a free house?
“Your homeland” How stupid do Israelis think Jews are?
‘Well, Alex, we were going to give you land, a free house, a generous per-diem, deluxe internet, and exempt you from IDF service, all for free and permanently tax-free, but now that we see what your opinions are, the deal’s off! Ha, you lose, Alex, that’s the cost of self hatred!’