While the economic situation in much of the West Bank has improved over the last couple years, this progress has largely missed many of the West Bank’s refugee camps.

Askar Refugee Camp was established in the Palestinian city of Nablus in 1950 by the United Nations Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA). It was designed to house some of the 700,000+ people displaced or expelled during the creation of the state of Israel in 1948. The camp, however, was expanded by its residents in 1965 due to overcrowding. The expansion became known as New Askar Refugee Camp but was not officially recognized by UNRWA.

According to UNRWA, as of 2007, the poverty rate in Askar hovers between 40 and 50 percent while close to 30 percent experience “extreme” poverty.

The original residents of Askar Refugee Camp were expelled from areas such as Jaffa and Haifa in, what is now, Israel. Many camp residents still hold the keys and deeds to their pre-1948 homes hoping that they will be able to return one day.

New Askar Refugee Camp was an essential part of my introduction to Palestine back in 2005. I spent a little over two weeks volunteering and spending time with the kids of the camp. I returned to volunteer again in the summer of 2008. Now, five years since my first visit, I still recognize many of the children that have unknowingly played a significant role in my life, not as a photographer, but as a human being. And for that, I will be eternally grateful to them.

Being a freelance photographer gives me a degree of freedom that might not otherwise be possible. However, that also means that I am often forced to finance my own projects. If you enjoy my work, please consider making a donation.

Every Friday, Palestinians from the village of Ni’lin organize protests against the Israeli “security/separation” barrier being built through the village. Recently, these protests have turned more violent. Israel has, for example, declared Ni’lin a closed military zone on Fridays. This means that, unless you live in Ni’lin, you’re not even allowed to enter the village due to a makeshift checkpoint on the road to the village. This has greatly reduced the available press or even international observer presence at the protests.

We, however, managed to get into the village by exiting our taxi about 1km from the village entering on foot via an alternate route.

The protest followed a similar pattern as Bil’in the week before. The protesters marched toward the wall, chanting and waving flags. Soon thereafter, they lit a pile of tires on fire in front of the gate on the wall and the Israeli army opened up with a barrage of tear gas and concussion grenades. The first volley of tear gas, I should note, was actually fired at close range and aimed directly at the protesters instead of up in the air. Fortunately, none of the high-speed canisters hit anyone. For the next hour or two, the protesters would throw stones at the soldiers over the wall and the army would respond with tear gas. Back and forth in fits and spurts.

Finally, however, the Israeli army opened the gate on the wall and began chasing the protesters through the fields and groves of olive trees. There were a few live rounds fired but, as far as I could tell, no one was hit. The IDF ultimately arrested one protester before withdrawing back behind the wall.

I’ve uploaded a few photos below…

For those unfamiliar with the logos and paraphernalia of the various groups in Palestine, the child on the right (above) is wearing a Hamas hat. I thought it provided an interesting contrast to his Spiderman sweatshirt.

Being a freelance photographer gives me a degree of freedom that might not otherwise be possible. However, that also means that I am often forced to finance my own projects. If you enjoy my work, please consider making a donation.

Today, I traveled to the Palestinian village of Bil’in outside of Ramallah to photograph the weekly demonstrations against the construction of Israel’s “security/separation” barrier.

The march began shortly after the Friday prayers. Palestinians from the village marched, accompanied by a few international demonstrators, through the village and up to the fenceline where the Israeli army was waiting. The demonstrators began planting an olive tree at the fence while chanting and waving flags. Shortly after the tree had been planted, tear gas and concussion grenades were being launched by the Israeli army in an effort to disperse the protesters. Many of the protesters retreated but many younger kids fled into the surrounding trees where they began throwing stones and rocks at the soldiers.

After about 10-20 minutes, the Israeli army crossed the fenceline and began pursuing the demonstrators and stone-throwers. At the same time, another small army patrol had flanked the demonstration and came out behind the demonstration. With the bulk of the demonstrators retreating to the village, the army spent most of its time pursuing the stone-throwers through the surrounding fields.

The whole scene was fairly chaotic. In addition to trying to photograph the soldiers and stone-throwers at two different locations, I was also paying attention to the incoming tear gas canisters from the army and the incoming stones from the stone-throwers since I was wearing neither a gas mask or a helmet.

I’ve included a few photos from the demonstration and ensuing chaos below. I’ve also included a few videos that were shot by a local friend of mine. The videos are fairly short given the fast-paced situation but, hopefully, it will give you a feel of how Fridays go in Bil’in.

In the video below, you will be able to see the planting of the olive tree near the fenceline. I’m in the video briefly…

The video below was taken near the rear of the demonstration. At the time I was either up front or navigating the trees photographing the stone-throwers. You will hear, however, the crack of the tear gas and the whistle as they fly close overhead.

Being a freelance photographer gives me a degree of freedom that might not otherwise be possible. However, that also means that I am often forced to finance my own projects. If you enjoy my work, please consider making a donation.

Yesterday, I traveled to the Palestinian village of al Ma’asara, south of Bethlehem. For months now, Israeli peace activists and international activists have been meeting up with local Palestinians to protest the construction of Israeli settlements in the area and the proposed route of Israel’s “security/separation” wall, both of which, they say, are being built on the village’s land.

The march of approximately 50-60 activists and locals made its way through the village but stopped at a small makeshift roadblock set up by the Israeli army. The road, however, is not normally closed but the soldiers, who have grown accustomed to the weekly demonstrations, put up the roadblock to prevent the march from reaching the proposed route of the wall.

When the demonstrators reached the roadblock, they stopped and began chanting “1-2-3-4, occupation no more… 5-6-7-8, Israel a (sic) fascist state”. The soldiers, about 20-30 visible (I noticed later that another 10-20 soldiers were hidden in surrounding buildings and on rooftops), simply stood behind the roadblock without a sound and looked on.

The entire demonstration at the road block lasted less than 30 minutes and ended without incident. After some closing comments from the organizers of the march, everyone slowly dispersed and the roadblock was removed from the road.

Until next Friday anyway.

Being a freelance photographer gives me a degree of freedom that might not otherwise be possible. However, that also means that I am often forced to finance my own projects. If you enjoy my work, please consider making a donation.

Today, I spent a fair amount of time shadowing the Israeli army today as it went on patrols throughout the Old City of Hebron. I wasn’t invited, of course. I simply would follow them, take photos, and, perhaps, strike up a conversation as they were making their rounds. To be clear, my intent is not to interfere. I am there merely to observe. The army is free to stop, search, and detain anyone in the Old City. According to local Palestinians and CPT members, the army tends to be slightly rougher with the locals and they also tend to search and detain without reason more often when internationals are not observing.

I saw this first-hand tonight as I was waiting to meet up with some CPT members in the Old City. An army patrol passed by us and continued up the street. When they were about 50 meters away, I could see that they stopped and had set up a small perimeter, which is common practice when they stop and question someone. I quickly walked up to the area and caught up with them and saw that they had stopped a young man and had him standing against the wall. As I approached, the soldier began telling him to remove his shirt and shoes. As I walked around the corner and got close, I began taking photos. After the soldier noticed my presence, he told the young man to continue on his way. Shortly thereafter, the patrol also continued on its way back to the entrance to their base.

I followed them back to the entrance of the army base and eventually struck up a conversation with a couple of the soldiers. I had asked them why they stopped that young man. They simply responded that they can stop anyone that they want. I asked “Was there a specific reason he was stopped? Did he have something? Was he a militant?” The answer was “No.” I continued, asking why they do patrols at all. They explained that they do patrols for “protection”. I asked “Protection of who? There are only Palestinians living here. Are you protecting the Palestinians?” No answer. I asked if they were protecting the settlers. “Yes. The settlers.” I asked them, “Don’t you think it’s a little silly to have all you guys here for only 500 people?” No answer. A couple shrugs.

To be fair, all of the soldiers I spoke to seemed to be fairly responsive and pleasant. I got the sense that they were somewhat happy to hear a friendly voice, even if it was asking them pointed questions. For the most part, they’re kids serving their compulsory military service and following orders. I get the impression that not many of them really want to be in Hebron. Many mentioned that were looking forward to getting out of the army altogether.

I’ve included a few more photos from today below…

The gentleman in the next two photos was stopped and questioned because his son was holding a toy gun. I said to the soldiers “It’s a toy. Why would you stop him?” The soldier I was speaking to said that sometimes they put bullets in toy guns. “But even if that were true, they can’t fire bullets, right? It’s a toy.” No response.

Being a freelance photographer gives me a degree of freedom that might not otherwise be possible. However, that also means that I am often forced to finance my own projects. If you enjoy my work, please consider making a donation.

The Palestinian children below are on their way from school in a small village outside of Hebron. To their right is a dirt road leading up to an Israeli settler outpost. Settler outposts are simply small houses or villages constructed on land that was seized from Palestinians by Israeli settlers. Israeli settlements are much larger villages and towns that, while illegal under international law, are completely sanctioned by the Israeli government. Outposts are illegal even under Israeli law. The Israeli government has shown little willingness to remove them and, even if they do, they are often rebuilt soon thereafter.

Since this road is so close to one of these outposts, these children are often harassed and even attacked by settlers from both the settlement (behind me in the photo above) and the outpost (at the top of the hill to the right). As such, CPT stations its members along this road to accompany the children on their walk home in order to try and prevent, or at least discourage, attacks from settlers.

Being a freelance photographer gives me a degree of freedom that might not otherwise be possible. However, that also means that I am often forced to finance my own projects. If you enjoy my work, please consider making a donation.

As I mentioned in a previous post, Hebron is a fascinating microcosm of the Israel/Palestine conflict. One obvious example is the case of Shuhada Street.

The city of Hebron is divided into two primary zones: H1 and H2. H1 is primarily under the administration of the Palestinian Authority, though the Israeli army reserves the right to enter at any time without opposition. H2 is under the jurisdiction of the Israeli military. H2 is also where a number of Israeli settlements are located. You can see in the map below that the Old City of Hebron, almost entirely Palestinian, is located within H2. I am also currently staying in the Old City. Since it is part of H2, you will come across roaming Israeli army patrols and Israeli checkpoints and watch/sniper towers while walking through the streets.

Click for a larger version…

In the map above, to the left and slightly below the Old City, you will see Al-Shuhada Street. Al-Shuhada Street is strictly off-limits to local Palestinians. For example, today, I was planning on walking down Shuhada Street but my fellow Palestinian photographer was unable to accompany me and went back to our guest house.

Below you will see a photo of Shuhada Street taken from the roof of the CPT house in the Old City.

To give you an example of how strict the travel restrictions for Palestinians using Shuhada Street are, let me give you an example. Let’s say that I am standing with my Palestinian friend at the location above. If we both want to visit the Muslim cemetery, I, being an American (or more importantly, not a Palestinian), can just cross the street. He, on the other hand, has a much longer trip ahead of him. If wants to walk, he will have to walk about 1.5km and enter the cemetery from H1. If he wants to drive to the cemetery, the trip is approximately 12km.

Let me illustrate this even further. Along Shuhada Street, there are many Palestinian homes. Their front doors are located on Shuhada Street. Unfortunately, since Palestinians cannot use this road, they cannot use the front doors of their home. Instead they have to enter from behind in the Old City. The stairs on the roof below are used by a Palestinian family to enter their second or third floor home because they are not allowed to use the front door.

From inside the Old City, Israel has constructed large barricades blocking any access to Shuhada Street or any other areas that are used by Israeli settlers. Below is a photo of one such barricade:

Israeli settlers are subject to no such restrictions.

Some background
Israel occupied the West Bank after the 1967 Six Day war. Under the Fourth Geneva Convention, it is illegal for an occupying power to resettle its civilian population to occupied land. Imagine the US government offering housing and tax incentives for Americans to move to Baghdad in order to make it a permanent part of the United States. That is precisely what Israel has done. To put it into numbers, there are only about 400-500 Israeli settlers in Hebron, all protected by the Israeli army, while there are approximately 166,000 Palestinians.

Being a freelance photographer gives me a degree of freedom that might not otherwise be possible. However, that also means that I am often forced to finance my own projects. If you enjoy my work, please consider making a donation.

This morning I accompanied members of the Christian Peacemaker Teams as they went on their early morning school patrol in Hebron. Palestinian children were on their way to take exams and CPT stations themselves throughout the city as witnesses. While at checkpoints and other areas throughout the city, they make their presence known to the Israeli soldiers and settlers in the area by wearing bright red caps and record the number of children who are checked and/or detained on their way to school.

This morning was calm and chilly. A slow trickle of students made their way through the checkpoint, many setting off the metal detector inside. It did not, appear, however that any of the students were pulled aside and checked more thoroughly. It should be noted, too, that only Palestinians coming toward the nearby Israeli settlement, as the children were, had to go through the checkpoint. Palestinians walking away from the checkpoint could pass through via a small walkway on the left side of the street, as pictured below.

I asked one of the Israeli soldiers, who introduced himself as Yuda, if they check the children on their way to school. He said “No”. “Never”. I then asked why the children were forced to go through the checkpoint at all. He mildly shrugged and didn’t offer an answer. In an effort to change the subject, I asked him how much longer he had in the army and what he planned to do after he was out. He said that he only had one month left and then he wanted to go into social work to help children and the poor. I asked hopefully, “Palestinian children?”. A quick shake of his head was followed by “In Israel”. I asked if he thought it would be a good gesture for a former Israeli soldier to do social work to help Palestinian children. He seemed to shrug and nod as if to say “I don’t know. Maybe.” After this brief conversation, Yuda retired to a small chamber in the checkpoint where he waved through the next wave of kids from behind bulletproof glass.

Above: A member of CPT (red cap) talks with two members of the Israeli peace organization, Machsom Watch.

Being a freelance photographer gives me a degree of freedom that might not otherwise be possible. However, that also means that I am often forced to finance my own projects. If you enjoy my work, please consider making a donation.

We arrived in Hebron this afternoon after a long drive and a brief stop in Ramallah. Over the next few days, I’ll be embedded with the Christian Peacemaker Teams in Hebron and documenting their work in the area. Their primary mission here is to protect the Palestinian civilian population (particularly children) from attack by Israeli settlers and soldiers.

I’ve been to Hebron once before but only for one day. Hebron, however, is an amazing microcosm of the entire Israel/Palestine conflict. Hebron is the only place where Israeli settlers live amongst the local Palestinian population, albeit with the help of walls, barbed wire, and a large Israeli military presence. In fact, about 150 meters from my room window, one can see a large Israeli sniper tower that watches over the square below and the entrance to an Israeli settlement. As we were waiting to meet our hosts, a heavily-armed Israeli army patrol arrested and detained a Palestinian and took him behind the walls. No one was able to tell us why he was arrested. So, things in Hebron are pretty tense.

On the bright side, I had some fantastic shawarma for dinner before we stopped and smoked some shisha at a local cafe.

Below, I’ve included a photo of the street leading to the Old City where we are staying and, finally, in case you had any visions of a Western photojournalist staying in swanky hotels while out in the field, a photo of my room. In addition, earlier while I was using the single restroom, the toilet fell apart. Yes. Fell apart. We’re hoping it will be fixed in the morning.

All in all, though, I’m looking forward to doing some work over the next few days and documenting the amazing work that CPT does.

Being a freelance photographer gives me a degree of freedom that might not otherwise be possible. However, that also means that I am often forced to finance my own projects. If you enjoy my work, please consider making a donation.

Askar Refugee Camp is located on the outskirts of the Palestinian city of Nablus in the occupied West Bank. The camp was established in 1950 by the United Nations Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA). The camp was created to house some of the 700,000 people displaced or expelled by the creation of the state of Israel in 1948. The original residents of Askar camp included Arab families from what is now Jaffa and Haifa in modern-day Israel. In 1965, residents of the camp began expanding into the surrounding territory because of severe overcrowding within the original lot allocated to Askar camp. This new territory became known as “New Askar” but is not recognized by UNRWA.

According to UNRWA, the poverty rate in Askar camp hovers between 40 and 50 percent, with close to 30 percent of camp residents experiencing “extreme” poverty. [1].

On 15 June 2008, the children of New Askar Refugee Camp participated in a parade to honor child “martyrs”. This included any child resident of the camp who had died or had been killed within the last few years. This mostly celebratory march took a somber turn when it ended at the grave of Jamil Abdul-Kareem al-Jabaji. Jamil was killed by the Israeli army on 3 December 2006. When the Israeli human rights organization B’Tselem reported that Jamil was a minor and a non-combatant, the Israeli army was quick to correct the report by adding that Jamil had been shot while he was throwing stones at an Israeli army vehicle as it patrolled the camp, making him a combatant. Jamil was 14.

Click on each photo for a larger version…

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