Why Aren't my Palestinian Friends Allowed to Sit Next to Me on the Beach at Tel-Aviv?

Greetings and blessed be Sister;) thank you for the kindness of asking my friendship. Hope to speak to you again :)
Anna

hiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiis whats up, thanks for adding me as a friend

Dear Hannah:

Thank you for your kind comment. I am very optimistic. I am now reading by and about Matiel Moghannam who wrote the book "The Arab Women and the Palestine Problem" published 1937. She had convened trhe first all Palestine Women Congress in 1929 (among her many other accomplishments). Truly inspiring. We really must get more women in leadership positions and then we would not have teh problems of Fatah-Hamas etc. :-)

Hay Hana
Have a look on this story

Gazan children

By Samah A. Habeeb

Gaza Strip, 18, Oct, 2008- Gaza Strip, Palestine- Severe terror and traumas are de facto storms for children in the occupied territories, especially those who exist in the Gaza Strip.

The ongoing Israeli military operations and violent retaliation induce psychological maladies and wretched conditions. The recent CEASEFIRE in Gaza allows a temporary rest but not the cure for their fears and nightmares.

The summer of 2007 was a start of a mayhem for a poor Bedouin family of Sahar. Sahar Owaidat, 6, remains in state of shock or perhaps is exhibiting symptoms of post traumatic stress disorder ever since Israeli soldiers stormed her home and brutally beat her father and siblings while she and the rest of the family members helplessly observed.

In all cultures the Father of the family represents safety and security to the family. The Israeli soldiers routinely rob Palestinian fathers of their role.
Sahr fixed her large eyes upon me and informed me, "I asked my mum to hug me and keep me safe. I was scared when I heard the voice of my Dad moaning and screaming. I saw the blood covering our house and many ghosts tried to snatch me. In the corner of the room, three soldiers were beating my younger brother Emad. I cried and cried and cried until my mum awakened me. I am afraid to sleep because they keep coming back."

Tears filled my eyes, but Sahr's were blank and empty as she recounted that night one year ago when the Israeli army repeatedly invaded the area where she lived. The family informed that the Israeli soldiers had burst into their house, arrested all the brothers and beat them in front of the family.

Sahr said , "I wanted to go to my kindergarten and I prepared my pens and papers. I went to sleep but I could not, I heard a sound of close shootings. Then the tanks came over and I heard the voice and hurried to my mum. I saw all my siblings and dad beside her. She hugged me and I cried a lot."

On the day of which Sahar speaks of, after three grueling hours of military operations, the soldiers powerfully and angrily burst into some neighboring houses. The house of Sahr's family was just one of many homes where male family members were detained by Israeli forces. While many were released after 48 hours, Sahar's brother Samer was not.

Samer was sent to court and sentenced for 5 years convicted of engaging in "military actions."

Later in summer 2008, the army got back to cause more panic and fear for children.The Israeli army has bulldozed the agricultural land of the Owaidat family and multitudes of their olive trees that sustained the family were uprooted.


The Owaidat family includes four girls and five boys who like their neighbors live in constant fear and are traumatized by the shelling and invasions from the Israeli army ever since the disengagement in 2005.

The mother told me, "Sahar changed that day she witnessed the savage storming into our home. She became introverted and she now suffers from involuntary urination and nightmares. Her two young siblings also have the same symptoms."

The current focus in Gaza is directed to humanitarian needs such as food and water and the absence of psychotherapy in Gaza is reaping a generation of children weaned on fear and trauma.

Sahar ended my visit with her pleading, "I want to go to my kindergarten and I don't want to see those ghosts again. Please, if you see them tell them I'm afraid. Don't let them come again."
People of conscience wonder what would happen if another people attacked the USA in the manner that Israel has attacked the indigenous people of the land these last sixty years: stealing and destroying their land, bombing their homes, killing their children and families, depriving them of the basic needs to live and robbing them of human dignity.

Would Americans passively allow such abuse of their families for 60 years?
Or would they revolt and retaliate with violence?
Or, perhaps, the good people of America would launch a massive movement for peace, resolution and reconciliation based on international law and equal human rights for all people?

Contact me:
Samah A. Habeeb, B.A.
Photojournalist & Peace Activist
Humanitarian, Child Relief Worker
Gaza Strip, Palestine
Mob: 00972599306096
Tel: 0097282802825
E-mail: Sam_hab@hotmail.com
Sameh.habeeb@gmail.com
Skype: Gazatoday, Facebook: Sameh A. habeeb
Web: www.gazatoday.blogspot.com
Daily Photos:http://picasaweb.google.com/sameh.habeeb
Posted by Sameh A. Palestine at 9:55 AM 0 comments
Labels: Sameh Habeeb Gaza Strip Working for God

Nice to meet you Hannah.
It gives me pleasure to be one of your friend.

Salaam-shalom Hannah,
And welcome home. I live in Somerville, MA, so we're neighbors. {:^)
You and I share some pet "annoyances" - bigotry, imperialsim, apartheid, etc. And I'm sure there's a fair amount of overlap in how we think those things relate to Israel-Palestine. But there also appear to be some important differences. Is that something you'd like to explore with me?
Mepeace is still a young community. Until the kinks are worked out better and a more mature level of dialog achieved in public conversations here, I think we'd have a more productive discussion (if you're interested) in profile-page comments like these (which others can also read) or in private messages.
In any case, I look forward to hearing more from you, and about you.
Blessings,
-Hayyim

Hi there Hannah welcome to mepeace.

Dear Hannah,

We have here people who question the claim of Aparthied and racial segregation. will you let them educate you?

we are going to toward join future of Israelis and Palestinians, this cannot happened without the Palestinian voice and the change within Israel but also needs the Israeli voice. if we are about to educate each other and compete of which voice is more dominant we will mirror the conflict dynamic we experience now, when one of the voice dominant the conversation.

As we all experience humans, willing to see we are all Humans in Wolves clothing we seek here in mepeace.org to create conditions for cooperation and not divide ourselves between different educational paradigms. for that we need tolerance and wisdom to weave the voices of Humans in Israeli clothing and Humans in Palestinain clothing into one stream that create one future for all that include all of us.

No one here can command Israel to withdrew or Hamas to return Gilad Shalit but everyone here can participate in actions that will influence the dynamics in that direction.


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Neri,

if not to educate each other, then what is the point of this community? I am here to present a pro-Palestinian, anti-racist standpoint; something that we are not taught in Western schools.

And yes, Aparthied, imperialism and Manifest Destiny are ideas that “annoy” me. This ongoing bigotry suppressing the Palestinian voice is only working to hamper the peace process. I will listen to others' viewpoints, but I expect the same in return.

Hi Hannah!
Thank you so much for joining--I am so happy that you are on here! :)
I think this site will be a good place to exchange ideas; network towards peace and work towards a common.
Please tell me what the Arabic under the personal story means! :)