Imatin, Nabi Ilyas
This activity was shorter than usual because of limited time.
10:00 – Nebi Elias– Three women and one young man arrived to participate in carton crafts with Rivka. Some of the women came to the clubhouse on their own initiative this week to continue working on their projects according to the instructions Rivka had given them. They made progress on the progress with the project of making poufs they had begun last week. Rivka gave them instructions of what to do next week since she will not be here. Ronit, a friend of Rivka's who speaks Arabic, helped with the work and translation. Her help made the work easier and added to the pleasant atmosphere.
The Hebrew lesson did not take place today because the students had gone to the university and announced they would not be present.
10:30 – Imatin– Nine women arrived, and two of them brought their two-year-old daughters. The older girls whom we had seen previously were not present because they had gone back to school. Some of the women came to the Yoga class that was to take place after the Hebrew class and they listened and participated in the conversation. The difference in levels between the students makes teaching difficult, but is also amusing. The more advanced students translate what I say into Arabic. There was a lot of laughter during the lesson. The time went by quickly and seemed too short.
Sarah then taught a Yoga lesson in which five women participated. We brought Yoga mats that had been brought from Zita. We began with warm-up exercises. As an observer I was impressed with the effort and determination to perform the exercises. This lesson was also shorter than expected because of our need to return to Nebi Elias on time.
A-Nabi Elias
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A-Nabi Elias this is a Palestinian village in the northern West Bank, east of Qalqilia on Road 55, north-east of Alfei Menashe colony and west of Karnei Shomron colony and the Palestinian city of Nablus. As of 2016, the village was populated by 1,458 inhabitants.
Near the village is a maqam (holy site memorializing a sanctified person) - the prophet Elisha. Until 2021 Road 55 crossed the village. Then a bypass road was paved through olive groves that were sequestered from the villagers. Consequently, the farmers were left with small olive groves that they could not access nor cultivate. Inhabitants protested against the road for weeks, supported by peace activists, but nothing helped and the road is now a given fact.
The village's main street had been a shopping center for all residents, including colonists. We even saw a Kashrut (kosher food) inspector in a butcher shop close to the falafel stand… The bypass road, according to tradesmen, has impacted their businesses and clients, while others claim that there are customers now for parking has become easier.
Alfei Menashe and Tzofim colonies nibble at the village lands from the north and south and get closer to it all the time. Colonists of Alfei Menashe have outdone themselves, sending their surplus sewage from the oxygenation pools toward a-Nabi Elias land, even reaching the houses.
The villagers are known as seekers of peace. For years there was no hostility towards Israelis. On the contrary, we were always welcomed warmly and stopped there to enjoy their delicious, inexpensive falafel.
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Imatin
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Imatin This village lies in the West Bank, 19 kilometers southwest of Nablus city and 23 kilometers east of the city of Qalqiliya. Its inhabitants' number 799, all members of four families from the neighboring village of Imatin. Far’ata is identified with the Biblical Far’atoun, and an archeological survey has identified findings on a timeline from the Second Iron Age until the days of the Ottoman Empire. After the Oslo Accords, the built-up area of the village was categorized as Area B, but 80% of its farmlands were classified as Area C. In 2002, settlers founded the outpost of Havat Gil’ad, which they claim is located on privately-owned land purchased by the Zar family. The Palestinians claim they own the land. The Civil Administration has issued demolition orders for all the structures in this outpost and they were declared illegal, but nothing was done about it. On February 4, 2018, the Israeli government unanimously ruled to regulate this outpost by defining it as a new settlement or by erecting a new settlement next to it. Beginning in 2012, the Palestinian Authority ruled to include Far’ata in the local council of Imatin, a larger community. For further information: http://vprofile.arij.org/qalqiliya/pdfs/vprofile/immatin_vp_en.pdf
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