The Old city of Hebron, Palestine “I go out from Ein Sara street with other volunteers, Lauren from Australia and Alex from the UK, both of them are teaching English in the center. So we are heading to a different part of the city. To get there we have to pass through hundreds of shops. Leaving behind these conglomerated stores, we entered on a street with market stalls of fruit, vegetables even alive hens; we are entering the old city.
It is a different atmosphere, less chaotic and cosmopolitan. However, people still offer you the most sincere hospitality. The old city of Hebron, Palestine located in the H1 can be considered not very large. Despite this, it takes me almost an hour to cross it. In each store we approach, the shopkeeper offers to explain me great stories of the city and the culture, mostly about the crafts that were practiced and are still practiced in the city of Hebron, Palestine.ย
The streets are made of stone, like a labyrinth of rock. It is not hard to imagine the energy and the life that was breathed in these streets before the Israeli occupation forced thousands of families to close their stores. Today the rock labyrinth is characterized by the yellow of the closed doors and the nets located in the ceiling, preventing that settlers can throw their garbage to those few who still resist today.
When we reach the end of one of the streets, we find one of the checkpoints. In front of me, there is a boy of no more than 10 years old. The settlers stopped him before the last door, and force him to empty his pockets, lift his shirt and turn around. Then we passed, without any problem, even though we had a backpack. They only asked us about football teams, funny right?
Past the checkpoint the situations changes abruptly, the streets are deserted, you can count the stores with your fingers. It is like a ghost city. It seems that life ends after the Ibrahim mosque. It highlights an awkward silence packed with Israeli soldiers at each corner with large guns. Only life is seen in Jewish houses.
The old city of Hebron, Palestine makes you understand the true effect of the Israeli occupation in the West Bank, and to what extent the resistance of Palestinian people is necessary.
