BEHIND THE WALL ...

Elias Deis is a Palestinian man I greatly respect. His latest email gives us a look at what is happening behind The Wall. click for video https://youtu.be/WxMPT5gLVG4

The village of Al Walaja does not appear on the itineraries of tourist groups or pilgrims who visit the Holy Land. But for those who do make the effort to visit the village, they will be struck by the beauty of the landscape, the warmth of the welcome and the visible, devastating impact of the occupation. All around the village, destroyed homes tell a story of lives disrupted and families uprooted. Homes with roofs ripped off and walls torn down reveal the intimate details of domestic life - fragments of wallpaper, a broken basin, an overturned child’s pram left in a hurry.

Holy Land Trust have made their latest Virtual Tour video in Al Walaja working with a local tour guide Noor A’Wad. Noor outlines the seven decades of struggle this village has faced, beginning with the Nakhba in 1948 when evicted residents began to live as refugees on their farmland as 74% of the land became part of Israel. After the Oslo agreements in the 90s, residents were left in control of just 2.6% of the land and the erection of the separation wall and checkpoints gobbled up yet more land. Now the barrier surrounds the village on three sides and homes built on the contested land are bulldozed on a weekly basis.

As part of its commitment to non-violent resistance, Holy Land Trust has been running a home rebuild programme in Al Walaja, working with their partner in the UK, Amos Trust. This programme has made a huge difference to so many families in the village. Find out more at www.holylandtrust.org