The Palestine 2.0 Delegation explores current realities for Palestinians, including the repression of strategic organizing, the separation and segregation of the Palestinian population, and creative ways communities are continuing to resist.
Follow the delegation to read eyewitness accounts from the grounds, reports from meetings, and experiences with Palestinians and Israelis.
Exclusive content will also be available on Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook under the hashtags #eyewitness67.
This delegation is Eyewitness Palestine's 67th, successfully exposing more than 1,300 people to the daily realities facing Palestinians in their quest for justice.
We believe in the power of eyewitness experience and transformation. Given the opportunity to speak directly with Palestinians and Israelis, delegates return to the United States better informed, more energized, and with a deeper understanding of the possibilities for true justice in the Middle East.
When our Eyewitness Palestine delegation reached the Negev desert (inside the official borders of Israel), we were greeted by gorgeous blue skies beneath which straight rows of lush green barley were growing and solitary Bedouin shepherds were peacefully herding their sheep while being buffeted by a wondrous wind.I am a Midwesterner from Nebraska. At last I was seeing an area of ancient Palestine where I felt at home and at peace.
Read MoreWATCH: Our delegation recently visited the High Court of Israel where Organizers from Adalah - The Legal Center For Arab Minority Rights In Israel briefed us outside the court on either end of a hearing for an injunction on Israel's planned demolition of Al-Fura’a village. Here are the videos from the High Court. Others appear on Eyewitness Palestine’s youtube channel.
Read MoreWe got to Checkpoint 300 separating Bethlehem and the southern West Bank from Jerusalem at 6:30am. Immediately, Palestinians told me that I should not try to take delegation through... that it was crammed and only a few minutes earlier, soldiers had used tear gas in the crowd of Palestinians waiting to get through. “They’ll get crushed... haraam. Perhaps you can go around with them?”
Read MoreBattir’s footpath runs by an elegant 2000-year old Roman stone pool, fed by an aqueduct from one of three village water springs not yet blocked by Israel. The hillside terraces stepping down to the tracks are lush with gardens. But across the tracks, the villagers can get spring water only from an old, rusting pipe they aren’t allowed to repair, limiting their agricultural success.
Read MoreI felt pride even in the protest’s moderate success. Not asserting a Palestinian presence on this important anniversary would have conceded too much to Israeli Apartheid. Although the Shuhuda market shops remained closed up and the street empty alter the protest, the activists had continued to insist on their rights and dignity in the face of overwhelming Israeli power. They — we — had been there.
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