Hebron

 

Danielle asked if I would take her to see the West Bank during this trip. I stupidly acquiesced and brought her to visit Hebron, the second holiest city in Judaism and home to around 100,000 Palestinians.

I visited Hebron five years ago during the height of the Intifada to visit the the Ma'arat Machpela, the tomb of the Abraham, Sarah, Isaac, Rebecca, Jacob, and Leah. Hebron lies only 20 miles south of Jerusalem. Back then it was literally unthinkable to see a Palestinian flag waving. When we went last week, the city was filled with them. The geography of the city is very difficult to explain, but needless to say, the 300 Jews that live within a few hundred metres of the monument are separated from their neighbors only by a number of army checkpoints.

I don't want to engage in politics, but being in Hebron helps explain some of the complexities that surround the Israeli-Arab conflict. The tomb itself is shared by Muslims and Jews since both religions consider it a holy site. I snapped the above picture as we waited for the bullet proof bus to take us back to Jerusalem.