Peacemaking

True Images

Station VI of the Stations of the Cross in Jerusalem is one of the non-Biblical stations, commemorating a woman who wiped the face of Jesus as he carried the cross to Golgotha.  The image of his face remained on the cloth.  The woman is called Veronica, 'true image'.

On 25 April, we visited a Palestinian family who live across the street from the Israeli settlement of Tel Rumeida.  One of the daughters participated in an Agence France Presse project last year titled "Hebron: Our Next Door Neighbors".  Young Palestinians and Israelis were given cameras to take photos of their families and neighbors.  The young woman photographed an Israeli male settler teen from a window of her house as he stood at his window in the settlement across the street and took a picture of her.  The Palestinians' home has an iron grate from the ground up to the roof and a locked gate so settlers can't vandalize the house and attack its inhabitants.  The settlement has Israeli soldiers guarding it.  The two young people have never met.

On 10 May, we heard from other internationals that Israeli settlers had thrown stones at this young woman on her way to school, hitting her arm and hand.  She had been hurt seriously enough for the headmistress to take her to the hospital to check for broken bones.  At the request of the headmistress, we walked to the Israeli military checkpoint through which the student would have to walk to get to the school.  She carried the x-rays and report with her.  Thankfully, nothing was broken.

On 13 May as we were heading out of the Old City, the team observed Israeli soldiers detaining seven Palestinian men at a checkpoint.  The men were blindfolded and in plastic handcuffs.  We knew one of the young men.  Was their a problem?  The soldier I approached said no.  Had anything happened? He wouldn't answer.  Was anyone in danger?  Silence.  He told us to move on, that it was a closed zone.  Can people move in and out of the Old City? Yes, he said.  We just couldn't stand there. Move on or you will be arrested.  (They would have had to call the police.  Soldiers can detain but not arrest.)  In the meantime, the soldiers brought three more men out of the Old City, blindfolded.  After thirty minutes or so, the soldiers removed the blindfolds and the handcuffs, and released the men one by one, as their ID's were returned to them after having been run through the computer.  The man we knew told us the soldiers had detained him as he was walking through the Old City, no reason given.  Other internationals said this scenario was nothing - it probably had something to do with the celebration of Israel's Memorial Day and Independence Day.  This is nothing?

These are etched on the cloth of my mind.  These are my Veronicas.

13 May 2005
Hebron

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