Israel - A Nation Divided

Middle East » Israel
July 6th 2010

Published: February 9th 2011

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Paul and Nicola

The Writing's on the Wall

The West Bank Barrier featuring graffiti art

Making a visit into Israeli & the Palestinian territories was always going to be an interesting experience. We crossed over from Jordan via the King Hussein Bridge, and entered via the West Bank, to be faced down by immigration officers who stamped our passports with the dreaded Israeli entry stamp.

Strange as it may seem – this incident now meant that we were instantly blacklisted from several other Middle Eastern countries such as Saudi Arabia, Iran, Iraq, Syria and a host of others. These countries don’t recognise Israel as a country; therefore if you enter Israel, you are banned from their countries permanently, if there is any trace of a stamp in your passport indicating a visit.

Once we were through immigration we caught the local bus outside, and headed for Jerusalem to see what lay in store for us there…

* * *

You really need to get yourself on a city tour here, if you want to understand the importance of this city to the Christians, Jew and Muslims.

• Christians believe Jerusalem is where Jesus was captured, sentenced to death, was crucified, and died on the cross on the Hill of Calvary, where he

Hill of Calvary

The Church of the Holy Sepulchre, Jerusalem

later ascended into heaven.

• The city is of strategic importance for Muslims, who believe it is a sacred place where Mohammad (who rode overnight from Arabia) accented into heaven to converse with God, and developed the key tenets of Islam (pray five times a day, no alcohol, etc…). It is the third holiest city for Muslins, after Mecca and Medina in Saudi Arabia.

• And to Jews; Jerusalem is the Promised Land where King David, the first king of ancient Israel, built his first temple; and refers to a place where Jews all over the world have toasted for thousands of years - “next year in Jerusalem”.

Under Christian doctrine the Mount of Olives is the hill overlooking Jerusalem where Jesus ascended into heaven; but for Muslims it a place where the final judgement will take place; and for Jews (who believe Jesus was a prophet - yes, but not the messiah), it is where the Messiah will appear from when he arrives.

Jerusalem

The old city is divided up into different quarters: Christian, Jewish, Muslim and Armenian (who were one of the first people’s to embrace Christianity whole-heartedly), and is surrounded by a wall

Shabbat Time!

Jewish men singing en route to The Western Wall (Jerusalem)

built later by the Ottomans.

After getting our bearings we were led off on an incredible tour of the old city, taking in all the different sites. The more you know about the background of Israel the better it is for you, as it’s easy to get confused with all the different points of view. The city is utterly steeped in history, so here are just a few of the main sites we visited:

▪ The Church of the Holy Sepulchre - Hill of Calvary and Jesus’ tomb

▪ Via Dolorosa - the route of pain were Jesus carried the cross

▪ The Temple on the Mount – Judaism regards the Temple Mount as from where the world expanded into its present form and where God gathered the dust used to create the first man, according to the Talmud. The site is the location of Abraham's binding of Isaac, and of two Jewish Temples. The first temple was built by Solomon the son of David in 957BC and destroyed by the Babylonians in 586 BC. The second was constructed 516 BC but later destroyed by the Romans in 70AD. Jewish tradition maintains it is here the

The Western (wailing) Wall

Jerusalem

Third and final Temple will also be built. The location is the holiest site in Judaism and is the place Jews turn towards during prayer.

▪ The Dome of the Rock - According to Sunni Islamic tradition, the rock is the spot where Muhammad ascended to Heaven. Further. After his return, he called all who would believe him to join with him and be Muslim. It was at this point that Islam came into existence.

▪ The Western (wailing) Wall - we were amazed at the gathering of Jewish people and the rituals involved during Shabbat (Friday evening before the Jewish Sabbath on the Saturday)

▪ Looked across at the Mount of Olives (Jewish cemetery) & Gethsemane

▪ The Room of the Last Supper & King David’s Tomb - on Mount Zion

* * *

Your view on ancient history is often determined by your view on the contemporary, and what you hold to be true. Depending on your view of course; one country’s martyr can be another country’s war criminal. Think about the history of the “western world” as you’ve come to know it, with such dominant and impressive powers such as the British

The Dome of the Rock

Muslim temple (Jerusalem)

Empire and the incredible United States.

Now think about what your view would be like, if what you learnt in your textbook was instead dictated by the Native American Indians or the Australian Aborigines; or for that matter, countless other groups who have been marginalised throughout history.

All points of view are subjective depending on who is narrating (including my own); and things are no different in the Middle East. What is ‘a fact’ for you (or me for that matter), comes down to our beliefs - and our beliefs will act as a filter on actuality, creating a unique reality for each of us & hence be self-fulfilling. Technically, we don’t see the world as it is; we see the world as we are.

So here are some of the “facts” as I have come to know them…

* * *

Around 1,800 BC Abraham led his nomadic tribe from the Mesopotamia region, to what is today the Judean hills in modern day Israel. His descendants were forced to move on to Egypt due to crop failures and drought. These people however still identified Israel as their homeland as is written in the old

The Stone of Anointing

(where Jesus' body was prepared for burial) The Church of the Holy Sepulchre, Jerusalem

testament, and after being freed from Egyptian shackles, Moses led them back again several hundreds of years later, crossing the Red Sea when the waters parted.

Upon arrival, ongoing battles with other settlers forced the Israelites to abandon their loose tribal system and unite under King Saul. After Saul’s death, Israel was divided into two kingdoms – Israel, North of today’s West Bank, and Judea further south where King David took Jerusalem. David named the city Zion. Solomon, David’s son - built the first temple on the Dome of the Rock.

The region was later captured by the first of many conquerors - the Assyrians - who conquered the area, captured Israel and forced Judea to pay tribute. In turn, subsequent invaders and conquerors were the Babylonians and Persians amongst others. The Romans eventually arrived in force, and ruled directly or via client ruler, during the time of Jesus.

The Jews later revolted against the Romans, who crushed the revolt and destroyed the second temple. Around 300 AD Constantine the Great (Head of the Eastern Roman Empire) and his mother Helena convert to Christianity, building up churches in Jerusalem. This is a pivotal point in Christianity, and

Via Dolorosa

People carrying the cross (Jerusalem)

as a result Christians move from being persecuted to being saved.

Things aren’t looking good for the Jews who are once again persecuted, as Christianity comes into favour. Many Jews continue over the centuries to flee persecution and violence from their homeland. Rabbis write down Jewish law so it can be practised by the diaspora over the coming centuries. The diaspora move throughout the world to far away lands, such as Europe, Russia and eventually even the U.S.

The Muslims turned up in 638 AD and ruled for several hundred years, intermixed with Christian crusaders determined to get “their city” back. The Ottoman Empire arrives in the 16th century, but neglects the area, and loses the region post World War 1 to the British. The area at the time is known as Transjordan, and is later separated by the British into Jordan and Palestine.

Jewish Zionism starts to take hold in the late 19th century, as Jews begin to return to Palestine. Hitler’s persecution of the Jews during the Second World War further highlights the plight of the Jews, and the U.S., U.N. and the U.K. are all invested in finding the Jewish people a piece of

Silver star commemorates birth place of Jesus

Church of the Nativity, Bethlehem

land they can call home. Israel literarily becomes a child of the holocaust.

Eventually the Jews declare the state of Israel; forging a state which enjoys the support of the major powers of the U.S., Britain and the United Nations. The original idea was to create two states in Palestine, one for Jews and one for Palestinian Arabs living there; and for Jerusalem to become an international city under the auspices of the U.N.

This seemed at least plausible, that was until the Palestinian Arabs rejected the deal they were offered, and a bitter war kicked off. As a result of the ensuing war, most Palestinian Arabs were displaced by Jewish settlers, and became refugees living in squalid camps in the Gaza Strip - the West Bank of Jordan and Lebanon.

Tensions remained high with the six day war kicking off in 1967, and later the Jews take complete control of the Gaza Strip from Egypt, and the West Bank & East Jerusalem from Jordan; both areas have high Arab populations.

The majority of Arab countries don’t recognise Israel. Now the Palestinians believe they have become further marginalised, and it isn’t long before terrorist groups (both

The West Bank Barrier

political and extremist) manifest themselves.

Later on Israel manages to negotiate peace settlements with Egypt and Jordan, but some Palestinians fail to recognise Israel. Israel begins to move settlers into the Palestinian areas. The Camp David Agreement with Bill Clinton looks to find the illusive two state solution - but fails with more suicide bombings taking place. Consequently to facilitate protection and safety, the Israelis built a wall around Gaza and the West Bank.

In the 1980’s and 1990’s a protracted Palestinian uprising, “the Intifada”, in the occupied territories’ previously seized by Israel during the six day war, causes untold deaths on both sides.

Surrounded by antagonists it has been a never ending tale of woe over the last number of years for Israel. Over the past 20 years, thousands have died in the conflict, and today Obama and the U.S. and others, still look to push for peace and a possible two state solution.

Bethlehem (West Bank)

▪ We visited the Church of the Nativity, where Jesus was born. Downstairs in the Grotto of the Nativity, a silver star commemorates his place of birth.

▪ We headed on to the Milk Grotto, where the

Beach-side in Tel Aviv

Holy Family are believed to have taken shelter on their journey to Egypt.

▪ Afterwards we got a taxi driver to drive us by “the wall” (twice the height of the former Berlin Wall in sections, and approx. 670km long). He said that living in Bethlehem felt like a prison – being trapped inside here behind the separation wall - and you know what - he was right… It did feel like a prison while we were there, but at least we could leave freely.

And what a strange experience it is crossing back over the border and waving our EU passports; which actually gives you a sense of power over the guns, the barbed wire, and “the wall”, as you are easily allowed through.

Tel Aviv

Leaving all the politics and religion behind, we headed to Tel Aviv for the weekend, and what a dramatic shift only a few hours down the road can make. It’s a beach-side city with modern infrastructure and a cosmopolitan outlook on life.

On the Monday we caught a bus from the city down through to the country for 6 – 7 hours, and arrived in Eilat in the very