TENT OF NATIONS

It is tempting to think of the word 'tent' as a metaphor for a gathering of peoples together. In the case of Palestinian Daoud Nassar it also has a literal meaning.

The Nassar family is one of the few Palestinian landowners who have an official paper deed to prove ownership of their land near Bethlehem. A hundred years ago, Daoud's great grandfather planted olive trees and lived in a cave to work and to be with his land. The family has lived there continuously for generations to this day. None the less, for the past 26 years they have borne the repeated legal fees incurred fending off challenges by the Israeli settlement that covets the land.

Our delegation visited Tent of Nations yesterday after climbing over the huge boulders that the settlers had placed in the middle of the road.