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 In the neighborhood of Sheikh Jarrah, where Israeli settlers are in the process of taking over many Palestinian houses, there is an archive where Palestinians can store their photos, diaries, posters and other tangible documents. It is the first Palestinian run archive that is trying to collect memories, history AND documents that are produced TODAY, to store them for future generations.The initiative is called 'Khazaeen', the Arabic word for 'cabinets'. Each Palestinian that brings documents to Khazaeen, gets its own box, its own cabinet, to store the documents.  Through interviews, stories are collected and published on the blog of Khazaeen's website and on social media. The items are digitized and the owner can decide to take them home or to leave them in the cabinet. In the process of collecting and bringing documents to Khazaeen, many Palestinians have learned about the life and circumstances of their own ancestors. Often this has helped them to understand their own family history and the generational trauma that has been passed on, especially through the experiences of the Nakba in 1948 and the Naksa in 1967."It is very important to write our own history and to collect our own archive, rather than having our history stored in the colonial archives of the State of Israel", says Eman Alyan. "It is also important to collect brochures, pamphlets, posters, photos and art work of today, so we can save it for the future. "If you want to visit the website of Khazaeen you can use this link: https://khazaaen.org/en If you enjoy listening to Stories from Palestine then you should also check out the podcast Jerusalem Unplugged. You can find it on most podcast players and on social media. 

 In 1999 Al-Quds University created the “Community Action Center” (“CAC”), a semi autonomous association, which aims to empower the Palestinian community in East Jerusalem.The CAC aims to empower the disadvantaged Palestinians of East Jerusalem to access their rights and entitlements and negotiate the complex bureaucratic procedures that control the flow of these rights. Most Palestinian inhabitants of East Jerusalem are residents and not citizens of Israel. They have to prove that the center of their life is actually in Jerusalem, otherwise they will lose their residency. As Palestinians can’t leave East Jerusalem as they will lose their residency, they need to build new homes for their children in East Jerusalem. But they barely get the permits needed to build new houses, even on their own land property. When they decide to build without a permit, there is a chance to receive a demolition order. They have to demolish their own house. If they don't do it, the authorities will come, do it for them and present them with a huge bill of around a hundred thousand dollars. The Israeli policies in Jerusalem are made to increase the number of Jewish inhabitants and reduce the number of Palestinians. Many Palestinians do not know what their rights are, how to deal with the authorities and where to find support. The CAC gives legal assistance, advice and works on advocacy to get the international community involved. In this episode you can hear General Director Mounir Nuseibeh and Advocacy Officer Munir Marjieh.To learn more about the CAC you can visit their website https://cac.alquds.edu/en/TIP: Listen to 'Pre-occupation pod' a not so short history of Palestine, available on most podcast players or use this link: Listen to the podcast If you enjoy listening to Stories from Palestine then you should also check out the podcast Jerusalem Unplugged. You can find it on most podcast players and on social media. 

In the Naqab desert you can find the Nabatean desert cities that were established on the incense and spices route. This was a very important trade route that stretched over about 1800 kilometers from Yemen / Oman until the port in Gaza. The trade was mainly in frankincense and myrrh, but also pearls, gold and cotton were traded. As the camels needed to stop every 35 kilometers to rest and drink, there were about 65 stops on the whole incense route.The Nabateans, a nomadic Bedouin group in the Arabian desert, was very familiar with the area and the places where to find water. They developed cisterns where they collected rainwater that they marked secretly so that only they could find them. This meant that all traders were depending on the Nabateans for water.The Nabateans set up forts and protected resting places on the incense route that grew into cities. When the Romans took over control of the incense route and moved it to go through Egypt, the Nabateans developed desert agriculture and specialized in wine making.They also converted largely to Christianity in the Byzantine time.The excavated cities of Avdat, Mamshit, Shivta and Haluza are on the UNESCO world heritage list since 2005. They are National Parks that you can visit by paying an entrance fee.Connect to Stories from Palestine podcast on social media: https://linktr.ee/StoriesfrompalestineSupport the podcast with a donation: https://ko-fi.com/storiesfrompalestine If you enjoy listening to Stories from Palestine then you should also check out the podcast Jerusalem Unplugged. You can find it on most podcast players and on social media. 

With a group of fifteen Palestinians and foreigners we visited the Arak distillery of Nader Muaddi in Beit Jalla. This podcast episode was recorded during his presentation.Nader Muaddi is very passionate about the craft of distilling Arak and the Palestinian heritage of this product. Arak is the oldest spirit in the world. Every single spirit comes from the roots of Arak. It started in the 8th / 9th century when the Arabs had their renaissance period. The first person documented in the world to distill alcohol was the Arab scientist Jaber Bin Hayan, after whom 'algebra' was named, who lived in Baghdad.  He said that it is of little practical use but of scientific significance nonetheless.  He originally created the still to refine the process of making 'al-kuhl', the medieval eyeliner that was used to make lines under the eyes to absorb the sunlight. It didn't work for that purpose so he tried using it for other purposes and he discovered how to distill it to make alcohol, that could also be used for medicinal purposes. And people didn't know how to name it so they used the name 'al-kuhl', the name of the eyeliner. When it arrived to the European ports the name changed in pronunciation to alcohol.In this podcast episode Nader explains the history of distilling Arak in a very engaging and informative way and he really brings pride to this old craft. If you want to follow him on Social media go to his Instagram @muaddi_craft_distilleryOr on facebook: www.facebook.com/ArakMuaddi If you want to connect to Stories from Palestine podcast on social media, if you want to follow us on YouTube, get the weekly e-mail update or support us with a donation you can use this linktree: https://linktr.ee/Storiesfrompalestine If you enjoy listening to Stories from Palestine then you should also check out the podcast Jerusalem Unplugged. You can find it on most podcast players and on social media. 

In this episode you can hear Nadim Nashif and Mona Shtaya who both work for 7amleh, The Arab Center for the Advancement of Social Media and Digital Rights in the Palestinian context.  We talk about several aspects of their work. For example how social media is censoring Palestinians and others with a pro-Palestinian message. Many Palestinians have their social media profiles shut down without a valid reason and it is often hard to counter that.  Another issue that 7amleh works on is digital security and the use of Israeli spyware on Palestinians and beyond. Recently there was a scandal when it was discovered that Pegasus malware, produced by the Israeli NSO group, was found on devices of human rights defenders, journalists and state representatives.   Other topics we discuss are PayPal, that doesn't have integration for Palestinians to use with their local bank accounts, and Google Maps that does not show Palestinian cities and towns in the Westbank on their maps, while it does show clear details of illegal Israeli settlements.   Furthermore, we discussed a recent campaign to counter Hate Speech online. The campaign targets Palestinians to raise awareness about abusive language on social media and how to recognize it.This is their website: https://7amleh.org/(Click the English language button on top left)If you want to connect to Stories from Palestine podcast on social media or sign up for the newsletter, if you want to follow the YouTube channel or do a very appreciated donation to keep the podcast going, then use this linktree: https://linktr.ee/Storiesfrompalestine If you enjoy listening to Stories from Palestine then you should also check out the podcast Jerusalem Unplugged. You can find it on most podcast players and on social media. 

This site is technically not in Palestine but in the occupied Syrian Golan Heights. It is only a few kilometers west of Tel el Qadi (Tel Dan) and it is really a beautiful ancient site with an interesting history. It was the most northern part of the region that Jesus ever visited and according to the Bible it was here that he first confirmed to his disciples that he was the Messiah. Banias is called after the Greek god of fertility, nature and wildlife: Pan. It was believed that his birth cave was here in the big cliff and the same cave was considered to be the entrance to Hades, the underworld, where the fertility gods would spent time during winter. People used to come and sacrifice goats to Pan by throwing them in the spring. If the goat did not sink down then the sacrifice was not accepted and they would toss in new born babies. During excavations a lot of statues of deities were found and remains of Temples that were built in Greek and Roman time. The son of Herod the Great, Philip, made it the capital of his territory and named it Caesarea Philippi, after the emperor Caesar Augustus and after himself. It was a thriving Roman city. Jesus never entered the city but he came up to the cave of Hades to proclaim that he would be victorious over death.After his visit to Banias he went down south towards Jerusalem and on one of the mountains, thought to be Mount Tabor, the transfiguration happened and he radiated in glory and he was seen by his apostles with Moses and Elijah.Connect to Stories from Palestine podcast on social media, follow on YouTube and support on Ko-fi, all links through this linktree: https://linktr.ee/Storiesfrompalestine If you are interested in the October program in Palestine (3 - 14 October 2022) then you can find more information on https://storiesfrompalestine.info/travel-to-palestine/ If you enjoy listening to Stories from Palestine then you should also check out the podcast Jerusalem Unplugged. You can find it on most podcast players and on social media. 

In this episode you can hear Palestinian American activist Abbas Hamideh, the founder of Al Awda for the right of return of Palestinians and the founder of the immensely popular Facebook group Mama's Palestinian Kitchen! Abbas was  born in Puerto Rico and grew up in the United States. When he was 12 years old his father took him to his homeland, Palestine. They went to Deir Yassin, in West Jerusalem, where his father is originally from. At the same age as Abbas was during that first visit, 12 years old, his father witnessed the Deir Yassin massacre. He survived it and he ended up in a refugee camp in Jericho. In 1967 they were expelled again and they left to Puerto Rico. This visit changed everything for Abbas. He understood the sadness, the bitterness and the anger of Palestinians in diaspora. He decided to become an activist, to struggle for the right of return of the Palestinian refugees that got scattered around the world. He established Al Awda and they organized many awareness raising events and protests. During the Covid pandemic they could not do anymore protests and gatherings. Some of the platforms on social media that Palestinians were on, were not necessarily a safe space where they could publicly share their love for Palestine. There was a particular group where Arabic food was the common ground, but the admins kept blocking Palestinians who were critical and asked to boycott Israeli products. So Abbas decided to start with Mama's Palestinian Kitchen and he could have never imagined how successful that would be. He had to ask friends to help him moderate the group and they had to come up with some strict rules in order to keep the page manageable and alive. If you want to become a member of the group you can find the Facebook page here, click:Mama's Palestinian Kitchen Facebook groupCheck out the website of Al Awda, the Palestine Right to Return Coalition https://al-awda.org/Connect to Stories from Palestine podcast on social media, check out the YouTube channel, sign up for the newsletter and do a very much appreciated donation to keep the podcast going! All the links can be found on: https://linktr.ee/Storiesfrompalestine If you are interested in the October program in Palestine (3 - 14 October 2022) then you can find more information on https://storiesfrompalestine.info/travel-to-palestine/ If you enjoy listening to Stories from Palestine then you should also check out the podcast Jerusalem Unplugged. You can find it on most podcast players and on social media. 

On Sunday 17 April I took the bus from Beit Safafa to the old city to join a tour in Silwan with Emek Shaveh, an Israeli NGO that, in their own words, works  to defend cultural heritage rights and to protect ancient sites as public assets that belong to members of all communities, faiths and peoples. That day was Easter Sunday for the Catholic Church, Pesach for the Jews and Ramadan for the Muslims. As we walked up to Mount Zion we saw a lot of police blockades, police everywhere and Jewish people walking towards the plaza in front of the Buraq wall. We heard helicopters flying over and we realized it was a tense day to go on a tour in Silwan. During the tour we heard shooting several times.Silwan is a Palestinian village close to the old city. Silwan is the place where the city of Jerusalem started in the Canaanite period, in the Bronze Age time. This is where the first small settlement was established near the Gihon spring. Today there is a big archaeological site and a lot of excavations are happening in Silwan. With archaeologist and founder of Emek Shaveh, Yonathan Mizrachi, we walked around the visitor center and the excavations and other parts of Silwan, to talk about how archaeology is used to make claims of ownership and to create a justification for taking over the Palestinian area of Silwan. There are two settler organizations active in Silwan: Elad and Ateret Cohanim. They use different methods to take over houses from Palestinians and create Jewish presence in the neighborhood.In this episode you can hear from archaeologist Yonathan Mizrachi that there is no evidence that the palace of King David was built in this area. They have not found anything from the 10th century, the time of King David, although the site is called 'City of David' archaeological park. If you want to know more, visit their website : https://emekshaveh.org/enIf you want to connect to Stories from Palestine podcast on social media, check out the YouTube channel, sign up for the mailinglist or make a donation to support the podcast, then you can use this linktree : https://linktr.ee/Storiesfrompalestine If you are interested in the October program in Palestine (3 - 14 October 2022) then you can find more information on https://storiesfrompalestine.info/travel-to-palestine/ If you enjoy listening to Stories from Palestine then you should also check out the podcast Jerusalem Unplugged. You can find it on most podcast players and on social media. 

This is the fourth year that I use the month of Ramadan to deepen my own spirituality and break with some habits that I don't want to continue with and introduce new habits. They say if you do something for three weeks, it becomes a habit. During the four weeks of Ramadan I do not drink alcohol, I refrain from eating sugar and processed food and I focus on eating fresh vegetables, fruits and balanced meals. I drink more water also. And I start and end the day with yoga exercises and meditation. During my walks I listen to spiritual podcasts. At the moment I am listening to the podcast "The Way Out is In" produced in Plum Village in France, about the Buddhist Zen tradition of Thich Nhath Hahn. It gives a lot of practical tools for being mindful, being in the present moment and allowing for feelings and emotions and suffering to be acknowledged and accepted as part of life.During my mediation and calm and quiet moments this month, I have also been reflecting on my life in Palestine and the big decision I took to get married to a Palestinian and move here. Last summer I gave up the house I was still renting in Holland and now I have all my life in Palestine and I raise my children in this place. In this podcast episode I share my reflections on the life in Palestine, focusing mainly on the cultural differences I experience and comparing how my life would have been different if we had decided to raise our children in Holland.In this episode I used some soundbites I recorded in the last year of typical street sounds that we hear around us in the Bethlehem area. Follow Stories from Palestine on social media and YouTube to enjoy photos and videos. Sign up for the weekly e-mail with a link to the latest podcast episode. And check out the webshop where you can order logo merchandise! All links on the linktree: https://linktr.ee/Storiesfrompalestine If you are interested in the October program in Palestine (3 - 14 October 2022) then you can find more information on https://storiesfrompalestine.info/travel-to-palestine/ If you enjoy listening to Stories from Palestine then you should also check out the podcast Jerusalem Unplugged. You can find it on most podcast players and on social media. 

For the full transcript of this podcast click the transcript tab next to the show notes tab or go to the website:  https://storiesfrompalestine.info/2022/04/08/south-hebron-hills/Sami Huraini is a young Palestinian activist from the village of At-Tuwani in the South Hebron Hills. His village, just as many other Palestinian villages in that region, is in area C, which is under full Israeli military control. Settlers and Israeli military are making life very hard for the villagers, in order to persuade them to move away into towns and cities under Palestinian Authority. But Sami is very clear: we are not leaving. This is our village, this is our land. We will defend and protect ourselves in a non violent way.Many of the villages in the South Hebron Hills are not connected to water or electricity. The people suffer from continuous attacks by settlers who set fire to their properties, steal their tools and even their life stock, violently attack shepherds, villagers and even children.The Israeli military is often present but does nothing to prevent the settlers from attacking Palestinians.In At-Tuwani the youth organized themselves in an initiative called Youth of Sumud. Sami is one of the community leaders and he was arrested in the beginning of this year. Originally without any charges, later soldiers made up some claims against him. He was given an award for human rights defenders who are at high risk. This has helped in getting more media attention and more diplomats to visit At-Tuwani. Recently they opened a guesthouse where visitors can stay. They are welcome to join for a tour around the South Hebron Hills, to spend some time in solidarity with the villagers, to be protective presence and accompany farmers, shepherds and children.If you want to know more you can check out their facebook group Youth of SumudYou can e-mail them : youthofsumud@gmail.comIf you want to connect to Stories from Palestine on social media, follow the YouTube channel, get a weekly e-mail or make a donation on Ko-fi, use the linktree: https://linktr.ee/Storiesfrompalestine If you are interested in the October program in Palestine (3 - 14 October 2022) then you can find more information on https://storiesfrompalestine.info/travel-to-palestine/ If you enjoy listening to Stories from Palestine then you should also check out the podcast Jerusalem Unplugged. You can find it on most podcast players and on social media. 

The month of Ramadan 2022 started in Palestine on the second of April. Between sunrise and sunset Muslims refrain from eating. When they break their fasting, they usually start by eating a date. They do this because according to the tradition prophet Mohamad used to break his fasting by eating a date. Dates have many health benefits and they are a healthy replacement for refined sugar.In Palestine date palm trees mainly grow in the Jordan valley, where the oxygen level is high due to the fact that the Jordan rift valley is about 300 meters below sea level. The climate is warm and dry. A perfect environment for the date trees.Jamileh Dajani is the only female Palestinian date farm owner in the Jordan valley. Her husband works abroad and she runs this business by herself, with the help of some workers who take care of pollination and harvesting. Jamileh produces for the local market and prepares special Jamileh delights, dates dipped in chocolate and covered with crunchy nuts and coconut. Especially around Christmas and Ramadan she is very busy. But still she found time to talk to me about the origins of the date palm trees, their specifics, the different kinds of dates, the health benefits, the challenges that Palestinian date farmers have and the difference between the dates from the Israeli settlements and the Palestinian producers. You can find Jamileh dates on Instagram @jamilehdatesIf you want to connect to Stories from Palestine on social media, follow the YouTube channel, sign up for the mailinglist or make a very much appreciated donation on the Ko-fi platform then use this linktree: https://linktr.ee/Storiesfrompalestine If you are interested in the October program in Palestine (3 - 14 October 2022) then you can find more information on https://storiesfrompalestine.info/travel-to-palestine/ If you enjoy listening to Stories from Palestine then you should also check out the podcast Jerusalem Unplugged. You can find it on most podcast players and on social media. 

Masada comes from the Hebrew word Metzad and this means fortress. It is basically a fortress that was built on top of a rock plateau. It is located very close to the Dead Sea and it is a bit south of the Westbank, so it is not accessible to Palestinians from the Westbank currently.The fortress was built in the time of Herod the Great who prepared it to be able to withstand a long siege. The rock plateau had palaces, water cisterns, storage halls, workshops, residencies for generals and barracks for soldiers and even a Roman bathhouse. The most famous story about Masada is that of the Roman siege in 73 AD when a group of Jewish Zealots who rebelled against the Romans, had taken the mount and decided that in case the Romans would take Masada, they would commit suicide.This story is only known from one written account, by the Jewish apologist Flavius Josephus. New research has shown that the ramp that the Romans started building, never reached the top of Masada. This really challenges the common understanding of HOW the Roman siege of Masada ended. Nevertheless, this is the story that is told by tour guides to the large amounts of visitors that visit Masada. If you want to watch the film 'Avenge but one of my two eyes" by Avi Moghrabi who made parallels between the bravery of the Jewish Zealots who are praised by the Israeli narrative and the Palestinian freedom fighters who are put aside as terrorists, then go to this YouTube link:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=99Iy-IapIdYConnect to Stories from Palestine on social media, follow the YouTube channel, do a small donation to keep the podcasting going and sign up for the mailinglist. All links can be found in the linktree: https://linktr.ee/Storiesfrompalestine If you are interested in the October program in Palestine (3 - 14 October 2022) then you can find more information on https://storiesfrompalestine.info/travel-to-palestine/ If you enjoy listening to Stories from Palestine then you should also check out the podcast Jerusalem Unplugged. You can find it on most podcast players and on social media. 

This episode was recorded in Aida refugee camp in Bethlehem, during our visit to Aida Youth Center where the director, Anas, spoke to us about the history of the refugee problem and life in the refugee camp.There are 19 refugee camps in the Westbank, three of them are located in Bethlehem. Aida refugee camp is the most teargassed place in the world. There is an Israeli army base right next to the camp and the Israeli separation wall has been built just on the edge of the camp. There is literally no space for the Palestinians who live in Aida camp.The camp was established by UNRWA in 1950 and families were given a tent to stay in. In 1956 they replaced the tents with rooms. One room for each six family members. There were no bathrooms and kitchens, only shared ones. These rooms have been replaced over time by houses built by the residents of Aida camp. And as there is no space to built outside of the camp area, they are building up, several floors. The camp has very narrow streets. Aida camp is named after a Palestinian woman who had a coffee shop in this area and who was a support for the first refugees that came to Bethlehem. The inhabitants of the camp come from different towns and villages that used to be situated between Hebron and Jerusalem. They locked their homes and took their keys hoping that they would return after the attacks were over. But they were never allowed, despite the UN resolution 194 that states that all Palestinians have the right to return to their homes.If you want to follow Aid Youth Center on social media, here are some links:https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCZl2BVF0J8O_k4zcWL4AwHQ https://www.aidacenter.org/ https://www.facebook.com/aidacenter.org https://www.instagram.com/aida_youth_center Connect to Stories from Palestine on social media, sign up for the newsletter, check out the YouTube channel and if you want to do a donation to the podcast, use this linktree:https://linktr.ee/Storiesfrompalestine If you are interested in the October program in Palestine (3 - 14 October 2022) then you can find more information on https://storiesfrompalestine.info/travel-to-palestine/ If you enjoy listening to Stories from Palestine then you should also check out the podcast Jerusalem Unplugged. You can find it on most podcast players and on social media. 

The Mount of Olives is situated to the East of the old city of Jerusalem. The Mount plays an important role in the Bible. It is the place where Jesus taught his disciples to pray. It is the place from where Jesus looked at Jerusalem and wept for its future destruction. It is also from here that Jesus entered Jerusalem on a donkey and was welcomed by a crowd covering the street with palm branches. And of course it is the place where Jesus spent the last night before he was crucified, in the garden of Gethsemane, where he prayed to God asking if this cup could pass him. The Mount of Olives and the Kidron and Hinnom valley are the location where according to all three monotheistic religions the final day of judgment will take place. There are many churches, mosques and the Jewish cemetery on the Mount of Olives. In this episode I try to give a good impression of what you can see and of the history of these sites. It is absolutely not a complete description but rather an introduction. Hopefully you will come to visit the Mount of Olives for yourself one day!If you make a donation to the podcast on Ko-fi the I will send you the link to the Mount of Olives video. When you make the donation on Ko-fi please refer to the video and send me your e-mail address! Connect on social media and sign up for the newsletter, or order podcast merch like mugs, stickers, t-shirts and notebooks with the podcast logo! All links in the linktree:https://linktr.ee/Storiesfrompalestine If you are interested in the October program in Palestine (3 - 14 October 2022) then you can find more information on https://storiesfrompalestine.info/travel-to-palestine/ If you enjoy listening to Stories from Palestine then you should also check out the podcast Jerusalem Unplugged. You can find it on most podcast players and on social media. 

Five years ago, in 2017, the Walled Off Hotel opened its doors in Bethlehem. After a period of two years closure because of the Covid pandemic, the hotel has recently reopened.The hotel is marketed as the hotel with the worst view, as it is located only a few meters from the eight meters high concrete wall that Israel built to carve out Rachel's tomb and a parking lot from Bethlehem for the exclusive visit of Israeli and foreign visitors to the site that is considered holy in all three monotheistic religions. There is also an Israeli military army base in that area, right on the spot that used to be the ancient entrance to Bethlehem and which was a commercially busy street until it was blocked off by the Wall. The Hotel's name is also a play on the famous and expensive high class Waldorf Hotels. There are eight rooms in the hotel that are designed by Banksy and other artists. The Hotel also has a museum that highlights the political reality for the Palestinians and gives an introduction to the geo-political history. There is a lot of art to be seen in the Hotel. Both in the lobby and the bar as well as in the gallery upstairs. You can see work by Banksy himself and art work by more than sixty Palestinian artists. The work in the art gallery is also for sale. Check out the website : https://walledoffhotel.comConnect to Stories from Palestine podcast on social media, sign up for the newsletter and support the podcast with a donation. All the links can be found here: https://linktr.ee/Storiesfrompalestine If you are interested in the October program in Palestine (3 - 14 October 2022) then you can find more information on https://storiesfrompalestine.info/travel-to-palestine/ If you enjoy listening to Stories from Palestine then you should also check out the podcast Jerusalem Unplugged. You can find it on most podcast players and on social media. 

Tel megiddo is an archaeological site in the Jezreel valley (Marj bin Amer in Arabic) where they found 25 layers of civilizations. Megiddo is mentioned several times in the Bible and it is associated with Armageddon, mentioned in the book of Revelations, the last book of the New Testament of the Bible, as the location for a final battle. It is not for no reason that the writer of the book of Revelations chose to stage this battle at Har Megiddo (the mount of Megiddo, from which Armageddon is a corruption).  This is the site of many ancient battles because of its very strategic location. If you controlled Megiddo, you controlled the most important trade route of that time, the Via Maris.The most famous battle is the battle of Tuthmose III, the Egyptian Pharaoh, who led his army through the very arrow Aruna pass (Wadi Ara) to surprise the Canaanite vasal kings who were preparing for a rebellion. In the 20th century the British army general Allenby, who read the stories of Tuthmose III, used the same strategy in World War I and he defeated the Turkish army at the same location, by coming through the same narrow pass.If you want to connect to Stories from Palestine on social media, see the videos, photos and support the podcast with a donation or sign up for the email list, use the linktree:https://linktr.ee/Storiesfrompalestine If you are interested in the October program in Palestine (3 - 14 October 2022) then you can find more information on https://storiesfrompalestine.info/travel-to-palestine/ If you enjoy listening to Stories from Palestine then you should also check out the podcast Jerusalem Unplugged. You can find it on most podcast players and on social media. 

This is a special episode in Dutch for the Dutch foundation 'Plant an olive tree'If you want to learn more about olive tree planting in Palestine you can listen to episode 6 of season 5 (20 February 2022) in English.Dit is een speciale aflevering in het Nederlands gemaakt op verzoek van Stichting Plant een Olijfboom. In deze aflevering spreek ik met Esther over het werk van de Stichting.Plant een Olijfboom ondersteunt geweldloos verzet van Palestijnse boeren tegen landconfiscatie door het aanplanten van gesponsorde olijfbomen. En promoot reizen om de situatie met eigen ogen te zien en de boeren te helpen. Stichting Plant een Olijfboom werkt voor rechtvaardige vrede met gelijkwaardigheid voor alle burgers, inclusief recht op terugkeer voor Palestijnse vluchtelingen. Iedereen die dat wil, kan een olijfboom sponsoren die in het volgende plantseizoen wordt aangeplant bij Palestijnse boeren. Daarmee help je voor hen de hoop levend te houden, toon je solidariteit en steun je hen in de strijd voor het behoud van hun land. De Stichting werkt samen met een aantal betrouwbare Palestijnse partners. Een daarvan is de Joint Advocacy Initiative van de YMCA in Oost Jeruzalem en de YWCA van Palestina. De JAI oganiseert jaarlijks programma's waarbij buitenlandse vrijwilligers kunnen komen helpen met het werk op het land, het aanplanten van bomen en het plukken van olijven. Daarbij worden ook excursies en ontmoetingen met verschillende organisaties aangeboden. Als je na het luisteren meer wilt weten, een olijfboom wilt sponsoren, op reis wil naar Palestina of als vrijwilliger actief wilt worden, ga dan naar de website en neem contact op!https://www.planteenolijfboom.nlStories from Palestine podcast heeft elke week een nieuwe aflevering met verhalen en geschiedenis uit Palestina. Je kunt ook via social media op de hoogte blijven. Bekijk ook eens de filmpjes op YouTube en meld je aan voor de wekelijkse email!Alle links kun je vinden via de linktree: https://linktr.ee/Storiesfrompalestine

For this episode I joined the olive tree planting in Al Khadr, organized by the Keep Hope Alive campaign that is run by the JAI. (Joint Advocacy Initiative of the East Jerusalem YMCA and the YWCA of Palestine)I interviewed several people on the field, some of the organizers and participants of the planting day. We talked about the threats that Palestinian landowners experience from expanding settlements, violent settlers and the army who are after the Palestinian land, trying to take it by force or in legal procedures. If land is not planted and exploited then it is easier for the Israeli settlers and the State to confiscate it through legal ways. That's why most Palestinians are planting olive trees. The trees do not need as much care as agriculture crops or grape vines, so even if they don't have regular access to their land due to the Israeli restrictions, walls and checkpoints, the olive trees have a larger chance to survive.If you want to read more about the Olive Tree campaign you can follow this link:https://www.jai-pal.org/en/campaigns/olive-tree-campaignIf you follow Stories from Palestine on social media you weekly get to see some extra information, photos and videos on Facebook and Instagram. You can also subscribe for the weekly e-mail. All the links can be found here: https://linktr.ee/Storiesfrompalestine If you are interested in the October program in Palestine (3 - 14 October 2022) then you can find more information on https://storiesfrompalestine.info/travel-to-palestine/ If you enjoy listening to Stories from Palestine then you should also check out the podcast Jerusalem Unplugged. You can find it on most podcast players and on social media. 

February is Black History month, an annual celebration of achievements by African Americans and a time for recognizing their central role in US history. I thought it was a great moment to record an episode about the Afro Palestinian community in Jerusalem.My friend Issam who runs Bassem's Gallery Bookshop Cafe in the Via Dolorosa helped me to connect to Mohammed Qous, a 22 year old member of the Afro Palestinian community, who grew up in the African quarter in the old city. His grandfather originates from Chad. He married seven women in his life and with a Palestinian woman from Jericho he had several children, among whom Mousa, the father of Mohammed. Mousa married a Palestinian woman from the United States and Mohammed was born and grew up in the African quarter.In this episode he talks about the Afro Palestinian community. Most of the first generation came from Chad, Sudan, Senegal and Nigeria. They were in Jerusalem as part of a pilgrimage to the holy city of Jerusalem. When the Zionist militias occupied Palestine in 1948 and the State of Israel was declared, they remained in the city to protect Al Aqsa mosque. And the changed political situation made it hard for them to travel back to their countries. They remained in the city and they were given a quarter to live in, close to Bab al Misjla, one of the entrances to Al Aqsa compound, in two old Ottoman prison compounds. The African quarter exists until today and is overly crowded. It is considered one of the hotspots by the Israeli forces and there is constant Israeli police presence in the quarter. On my way to the interview I had the incredible luck to meet Ali Jeddah, one of the icons of the Afro Palestinian community. Recently he has been spending more time with his family in Akko because he needs health treatment in the hospital in Haifa. But he loves Jerusalem and he can't stay away for long, so he came for a visit and he was sitting at his usual spot near the Damascus Gate. I was not prepared to interview him but I did record a conversation we had before I headed to the Cafe in the Via Dolorosa to meet with Mohammed. Website of the African Community Society in Jerusalem: https://www.afropalestinians.org/Some videos : https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aOnL80yhikohttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yCsefJqkV9kConnect to Stories from Palestine on social media, check out the YouTube channel, sign up for the mailinglist and support the podcast with a donation! Click the linktree: https://linktr.ee/Storiesfrompalestine If you are interested in the October program in Palestine (3 - 14 October 2022) then you can find more information on https://storiesfrompalestine.info/travel-to-palestine/ If you enjoy listening to Stories from Palestine then you should also check out the podcast Jerusalem Unplugged. You can find it on most podcast players and on social media. 

In the beginning of July 2021 Salah and his wife Nynke left Holland to go on a great adventure. They decided to go on a 6 month bike ride heading towards Istanbul and from there they would try to find a way to get to Egypt and from Egypt to Jordan and then finishing in Palestine to attend the wedding of Salah's sister in Balata camp in Nablus.In this podcast episode, recorded with live audience in Beit Sahour, Palestine, you can hear from Salah how they decided to go on this long journey. How did they plan and carry out this trip, where did they sleep, what was their daily routine and what were some of the beautiful, fascinating, touching and crazy experiences they had on their way!This bike trip was a life changing experience for Salah and for Nynke. And this story may inspire YOU to change some things in life. If there is one lesson to learn from Salah then it is that fear is only an idea. And if you can realize it, you can control fear and that will change your perspective on life.If you want to watch the videos that Salah made go to his YouTube channel : Salah Hanoun on YouTubeYou can also follow Salah on Instagram: https://instagram.com/salahonbikeAnd Nynke's stories on Instagram: https://instagram.com/tirhaal.on.bikeIf you want to support the podcast with a donation you can do that on the Ko-fi platform.You can also buy merchandise from the Redbubble webshop.Click this linktree to find all the links (including social media and Youtube) https://linktr.ee/Storiesfrompalestine If you are interested in the October program in Palestine (3 - 14 October 2022) then you can find more information on https://storiesfrompalestine.info/travel-to-palestine/ If you enjoy listening to Stories from Palestine then you should also check out the podcast Jerusalem Unplugged. You can find it on most podcast players and on social media.