On the bus that takes me from Jerusalem to Hebron (al-Khalil in Arabic), an elderly Palestinian woman holds steady with her hand on her hijab, while the bus wobbles along the rough roads of the hills on the outskirts of Bethlehem. The city of Hebron is located about thirty kilometers south of Jerusalem. It is among the largest cities of the West Bank and is home to some 200,000 Palestinians, with little more than six hundred Israeli settlers concentrated in the Old City. The groups of Jewish settlers in Hebron are present among the most aggressive present in the occupied territories, it is mostly religious zealots and political extremists. Along Shuhada Street, the main artery of the city, now inaccessible to Palestinians, I can see a town gutted by the violence of the occupation. Abandoned houses, doors welded and often marked with the Star of David, checkpoints scattered in every alley, soldiers with machine guns on every corner. The barbed wire around the balconies has replaced the lilies of the past. No-one can access their homes and shops which have confiscated and seized by the Israeli army. Reportage exhibition at Centro Spartaco, Roma, Italy - October 2012
An elderly Palestinian woman holds steady her hijab, while the bus teeters on the rough roads of the hills in the outskirts of Bethlehem. The city of Hebron is located 30 kilometers south of Jerusalem. It is among the largest cities of the West Bank and is home to around 200,000 Palestinians, with about 600 Israeli settlers concentrated in the old city center.
Groups of settlers in Hebron are known to be the most aggressive presence in the Occupied Territories, it is mostly of religious fanatics and political extremists. From 17 January 1997, as a result of the Oslo Accords, the city has been divided into two sectors: H1 and H2. According to the agreement, H1 is under the control of the Palestinian Authority and H2 under Israel. Over the years, the Palestinian population in H2 has been greatly reduced because of Israeli restrictions.
‘Shuhada' in Arabic means "martyrs". It is the name of the most famous street in Hebron. Shuhada Street has always been the main artery of the city because it connects the central districts of Hebron with the north and south. For many years, the road has been the site of the most important and vital city services, until in 2000 the Israeli army has decided to block access for the Palestinian population to " ensure security to newcomers."
This road has thus become one of the major symbols of the ferocity of the Israeli occupation in Hebron. When you get to the checkpoint that limits the access to this street in the center of the city, you will find yourself wandering around in a big way almost deserted, as it is practicable only by Jewish settlers and the internationals.
The road is lined by old doors of Palestinian shops confiscated by the Israeli government, those shops that once enlivened the city and ensured a dignified life to the Palestinian people who have always lived in Hebron. As an international citizen, I had the right to walk on this street, I was able to walk safely, something that has not been equally possible for my friend Hisham, an activist for human rights, Palestinian, born in Hebron.
Hebron is one of the major centers of trade in the Palestinian territories. Since the occupation began, the Israeli authorities protect the colonial presence in the heart of the city, preventing Palestinians from using certain roads, as Shuhada Street. Everyone who had access to the houses and shops by this road is now forced to access their properties by passing through neighbors' homes, or from the rooftops. This made Hebron's old city turning into a ghost town.
Pictures of the ‘souk' of Hebron, the market, symbol of the economic and social life of the city. The situation in which we are faced along the streets of the market is disquieting. The entire route where the stalls of traders are is topped by a metal safety net that traps almost the whole market.
A child belonging to a family of settlers solitary strolls down a street in Hebron, on the other side of the same road, two Palestinian girls are walking. The route is split into two parts by a barrier. The right side is up to the Palestinians, the left one is for the Israelis.
Apartheid has never been more visible, more tangible. Often international activists accompany Palestinian children and teenagers who must necessarily pass through the city, passing through these streets where you have to walk to the side of the settlers because young Palestinians are often the target of physical assaults and psychological violence that the Israeli army finds hard to suppress.
The Israeli army walks through the city armed to the teeth and has the right to stop or arrest anyone without prior notice and any reason, it is called ‘administrative detention'. This is part of the strategy of terror implemented by the Israeli government, which aims to keep the Palestinian people under a constant state of siege and control.
You will encounter a large number of checkpoints traveling around the Palestinian Territories, usually, they are located at the territorial boundaries between one city to another. In Hebron, checkpoints are placed even in the old part of the town. These constant barriers make living an impossible life to the Palestinian citizens, they are forced to take long gymkhanas every day just to walk a few hundred meters away.
Grandpas and grammas of Hebron, with their big eyes full of stories. They are born a few years earlier or a few years after the 'Nakba' ('catastrophe' in Arabic), the displacement that preceded and followed the Israeli Declaration of Independence in 1948. They have seen the newcomers raping their land, they have lost a thousand lives and a thousand dreams.
A little child in Hebron playing with his camera toy, in his house
One of the many graffiti painted on Hebron's walls saying "Al Khalil 4/4 The Second Intifada" . Like the others, you can see on ‘the barrier of racial separation' fencing the West Bank, this graffiti brings a message of Resistance, in Arabic ‘muqawama'.
memory produces justice, memory produces struggle, memory is the soul of those who resist.
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