Hamra: Accompanying shepherds in the Jordan Valley
8.30
Walking with and following the pasture. Up the hills ‘escorts’ were waiting for us. One of them, a citizen, is carrying a weapon.
The two are familiar to us from similar “visits” to this grazing area, with weapons and in an attempt to block or disperse the herd.
The shepherd acted wisely. He moved away a little, creating an opening for the two of us who accompanied him: each of us walked close to one of the invading visitors, preventing him from scattering the herd and keeping him away. Each at a different end of the herd, all the while photographing and transferring the photograph to the members of the coalition group.
The license plate of the car in which the two arrived is covered in mud.
We continued accompanying herd and shepherd without further covert calamities.
The special “visitors” came from the outpost uphill, whose men routinely assault other shepherd families in the area.
The first milk after calving, colostrum, contains a great concentration of beneficial nutrients. The leftover amount is cooked on stovetop or in the local oven, usually with added sugar and is scrumptious, and makes one feel that any other vaccines are superfluous.
Jordan Valley
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Jordan Valley The Jordan Valley is the eastern strip of the West Bank. Its area consists of almost a third of the West Bank area. About 10,000 settlers live there, about 65,000 Palestinian residents in the villages and towns. In addition, about 15,000 are scattered in small shepherd communities. These communities are living in severe distress because of two types of harassment: the military declaring some of their living areas, as fire zones, evicting them for long hours from their residence to the scorching heat of the summer and the bitter cold of the winter. The other type is abuse by rioters who cling to the grazing areas of the shepherd communities, and the declared fire areas (without being deported). The many groundwaters in the Jordan Valley belong to Mekorot and are not available to Palestinians living in the Jordan Valley. The Palestinians bring water to their needs in high-cost followers.
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