CPTnet
February 17, 2003
HEBRON: No School Today

by Art Gish

After a short break for the Feast of the Sacrifice, school began again on
February 15--at least for some children. Other children never got to school
again, because the 15th was the 93rd day of curfew in the area around the
Old City of Hebron.

Soldiers chased some children who slipped around the corner to get to
school in the curfew area. They frightened some children enough to send
them back home.

I accompanied two groups of girls past the soldiers. I also helped three
women teachers to get into the school after soldiers told them they could
not go. The Ibrihimi boys' school was locked shut, so those boys had to go
back home.
Three soldiers sat in a jeep and watched as two mothers accompanied their
children up the street toward the school. When the mothers and children got
near the school, the soldiers suddenly sped toward them in their jeep. One
soldier jumped out, pulled out a pistol and aimed it at the women, forcing
them back down the street.

I asked why the children could not go to school. "It's because they are
terrorists", they said. Soldiers told me that I was looking only at the
local situation. If I looked at the big picture, I would see that keeping
children from going to school does help make peace. A soldier told my
teammate that if we were Israelis we would want all of these children to be
dead. One soldier told us he was born without a heart.

It seemed that the longer we were in contact with the soldiers, the more
relaxed and less aggressive they became. The problem is not with these
soldiers, however. The problem is with the orders they receive. The problem
is the occupation itself, which must be ended for peace to be possible here.

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