BETHLEHEM - A few weeks ago, I had a tasty meal consisting of rabbits stuffed with rice, salata, humos, baba ghanoush (mashed eggplants with tahini), and other small dishes. Today, I found out that the rabbits that I ate were infected, and three others living with the ones I ate had just died. I did not feel so good after hearing the news, but I guess it's too late to do anything about it.
I have concluded that if the SPCA were located in Palestine, it would be horrified by the way people keep and feed their pets. In one house I visited, I saw a small boy petting a porcupine and subsequently start bleeding. In another location, I saw some sheep and chickens being kept in a vacant unfinished apartment. But I guess it is sort of silly to criticize people for not caring for and feeding their animals properly when they often cannot even afford to feed their sons and daughters.
This goat was one of many animals encountered in West Bank homes. (Daniel Zoughbie photos)
There are plenty of stray cats and dogs roaming around the neighborhood and, during the night, they scavenge in the dumpsters for meat. Last night, I heard a cat and dog fighting with each other. Coincidentally, I read in an Israeli newspaper the other day that a professor at Tel Aviv University has done research showing that cats and dogs can indeed get along. I got to thinking that if cats and dogs can overcome their age old rivalry, then perhaps there is hope for the Israelis and Palestinians.
 The Hamas table welcoming new students to Bethlehem University conjured up memories of student organizations tabling at Sproul Plaza. |
Today, I also visited Bethlehem University, a Jesuit institution founded in the 1970s that is considered one of the best universities in Palestine and is attended by both Christian and Muslim students. Most of the male students at the university dress in European-style clothes with gelled hair and cell phones glued to their ears. The female students vary much more in their attire — some are in jeans and t-shirts, and others dress in hijabs with long cloaks covering their clothes. The campus is completely walled off, and its gardens offer a serene retreat from the busy city. When I visited, there were tables set up to welcome new students, just like in Sproul Plaza, though on a much smaller scale. Their were four booths: one for Fatah, one for Hamas, one for the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP), and one for the Democratic Front for the Liberation of Palestine (DFLP). These student organizations, though probably on the U.S. list of terrorist organizations, are looked upon by most Palestinian students the same way we look at the Berkeley Urban Studies Student Association, for instance. The students that are involved in the clubs (not all students join) do not necessarily involve themselves in violence, at least to the best of my knowledge, but are nonetheless dedicated to ending the Occupation. All the same, a young man from another Palestinian university told me that 20 or so students from his school were involved with operations against Israel. As a result, Israel closed the university for a period of time. Out of curiosity, I asked if they were normal students, and he replied that he had not seen any unusual behavior in them beforehand. So when I pressed him as to the reason why educated college students would act in such a way, he replied casually that most likely their brothers or mothers were killed by the IDF, their land was stolen, or something similarly devastating had happened to them. The most popular of the student clubs in many Palestinian colleges seems to be Hamas, clearly reflecting Hamas's strong representation in the universities, in the local municipal elections, and perhaps in the future of the Palestinian Authority.
In Bethlehem, for instance, a city which was historically dominated by Christian Palestinians, there is a proportional system put in place by Yasir Arafat, supposedly to protect the Christians who are now a slight minority in Bethlehem, and, because of mass emigration, make up about 2 percent of the population in Palestine. Under this system, eight members of the city council must be Christian and seven Muslim, with a Christian mayor. Of the seven Muslim seats, five went to Hamas. In predominantly Muslim cities, its representation is even stronger. Palestinian newspapers and pollsters have estimated that if Hamas were to enter the Palestinian Legislative elections, it would take one-third of the seats.
Because of my work here with Palestinian diabetics, I decided to talk with the Ministry of Health and other medical organizations. But I was told that groups like Hamas also provide health care, in addition to education, religious, financial, and other public services. So, I decided to interview two senior Hamas officials in the Bethlehem area and ask them about these services. I was a little bit nervous going into such an interview because not long ago, a journalist was interviewing an Islamic Jihad leader when the leader was shot dead by the IDF during the interview.
During our conversation, the leaders explained to me how Hamas's health care services include providing clinics, hospitals, and mobile clinics in the cities and villages and providing critical services to the Palestinians. But I then got to asking them about the political situation. In short, they stressed the fact that Hamas was starting to emphasize a political rather than a militaristic approach as its main focus — a statement that I view as a real positive step. Both men spoke about how they had been imprisoned many times in Israeli jails and had been apprehended by the IDF. During the interview, one of the official's sons came in with two bottles of cold juice for us — ironically, they were Israeli brand juices. All in all, the men were very warm and hospitable, and from the discussion, they did not seem unwilling to consider options for peace. Their main complaints were the biases continually maintained by the United States towards Israel, the attacks and imprisonment of Palestinians, and that Palestinians are deprived of their land and livelihood.
As one of the officials stated, "Jihad, for me, is struggling to put food on the table for my family."
— Daniel