Nabi Elias
10:00 The class awaited us with an electric heater already lit.
An enthusiastic welcome, as usual. The students participated very actively in the lesson. Two, a man and a woman, aren’t at the class’s level and since it’s held in English someone always has to translate for them. Brenda thinks it would be better to teach them separately in order not to hold back the others.
The class opened with a discussion about Norway, their homework assignment. They were amazed at how beautiful were the photographs they’d found on the internet and at the descriptions of the country. It turned out they’d known nothing about it prior to the lesson.
The second topic dealt with the position of women in the Middle East, on the basis of an article (not too difficult) from the New York Times. It discusses expectations in Arab society for female modesty, and the fact women are almost never seen in advertisements. But it refers to two female photographers with exhibits in museums in Boston and New York which allow them to express themselves, represents other Arab women as well.
When the class was over the women invited Brenda and Rachel for refreshments at the home of one of the village women who prepares pitas; this time there was also tea.
A-Nabi Elias
See all reports for this place-
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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