Freedom Fighters
Trip Start
Dec 16, 2004
1
9
21
Trip End
Jan 17, 2005
Jericho,
Palestinian Territory
Sunday, December 26, 2004
night and the mud was knee height...but I diligently pulled weeds from the
squash plants. At 3 we had a VERY interesting trip. We went to a prison here
in Jericho with two very interesting prisoners. This is an American and
British run prison that was created to "protect" the men in there. The
first is Mr. Sadat...current leader of the Popular Front for the Liberation
of Palestine (PFLP). Brief history, it is a liberation movement started by
a Palestinian Christian man named George Habash. The PFLP was responsible
for the assasination of the Israeli Minister of Tourism in a hotel elevator
about 3 years ago. In reaction to this, Sadat was sent to his current home
as protection, as he is a dead man should the Israelis find him. So the
Americans and British are 'protecting' him here in this prison.
Hmmm........Okay. The other prisoner we met with was the Finance guy for
the political party of Fatah. He is in prison for supposedly stockpiling
arms on a boat in the Red Sea. It was amazing to hear them speak side by
side--b/c each has such different views! Both want peace, but by very
different means. Mr. Sadat spoke quite openly about the various checkpoint bombings that his group carried out, while chain smoking. It was like being in the twilight zone because both men are quite up there in age and looking at them, they are someone's sweet old grandfather who wouldn't hurt a fly and yet they have ordered murders and bombings. There was also a group of about 4 young men standing off to the side and I asked who they were. Well, they are the men who actually murdered the Tourism Minister! We spoke with them for about four hours--it was just surreal. It was also very obvious, the American employees standing atop the buildings with their walkie talkies, etc. I guess they have my number---but it's okay b/c they've had it since I entered the country I am sure.
It's funny b/c I always pondered the idea of whether Americans have certain mannerisms or other distinguishing figures that give away their nationality. I never quite bought into this as what exactly does an "American" look like? But I saw a man standing off to the side and just by looking at his watch, sunglasses, and the way he stood with his arms crossed...I thought immediately, "that man is an American." The same went for the men standing on the rooftop of the prison. I don't know why, but it was so fascinating to me to be able to pick these people out. I think it was b/c I hadn't been around many Americans in the past week or so that when I was, they really stuck out. Okay, weird sidenote but it was interesting to me!
