Tristan Anderson

http://www.maannews.net/en/index.php?opr=ShowDetails&ID=36435
i just read all about Tristan Anderson, yes, the boyfriend of the girl I was on birthright with. He's still in critical condition, as far as i know, and he had a part of his frontal lobe removed. They've been going to the Ni'ilin protests for a few weeks on Fridays, and they described them as "crazy" every time, but the 6th they said was calmer than before. But the protests in the village are intense, with army hummers chasing people around and shooting tear gas, rubber-coated steel bullets, and live ammunition. Just for protesting what the International Court says is an illegal wall. In Ni'ilin, it is especially bad.
He's a nice, really interesting, funny guy, who is well-read but has little formal education. He's a hard-core protester who has protested all over the world at "free trade" meetings and anti-war protests. He has all kinds of knowledge about the different military and police weaponry and procedures. Anyway, it is really sad to be reading about him from the comfort of a touristy beach town in Egypt. It was something completely unnecessary, that the Israeli military didn't have to do. I guess to steal land force is always involved (the wall is well within the Green Line). Still, they way they SHOOT tear gas at people... if they wanted to, they could have thrown it, or shot it anywhere but at someone's face. But, that's the way it is, Israel has complete power and its soldiers do whatever they want, carrying out missions that provoke more violence.
Anyway, I'm here, safe, and I just got my open water certification. I'm going to St. Catherine's monastery at Mt. Sinai soon, hopefully tomorrow, then maybe Luxor, Cairo, or Alexandria. It's hard to write this knowing that this guy is in critical condition and really could die, and already has brain damage. And that no one cares, and the situation probably won't change anytime soon.

http://www.maannews.net/en/index.php?opr=ShowDetails&ID=36435

It's been a while

So, I went to Hebron, in the West Bank, you can ask me about the details later... But I witnessed the effects of the occupation on regular people. I was mostly around Tel Rumeida, where some insane Israeli settlers live in the middle of Hebron. A few moved in after 1967, and more have been moving in and establishing other settlements since. They have a few streets to themselves, free from any Palestinians, right in the middle of the city of 165,000 people. The Israeli army literally welded the doors shut of the Palestinian houses and shops. The settlers have tons of IDF/IOF troops stationed around them, and there are many checkpoints around town, where people are searched and held up (in 2 ways) by 19-21 year old soldiers. Around the settlements, the Palestinians have cages around their windows, because the settlers routinely throw rocks and other objects at them. In a main market street, there is a big fence/mettle mesh over the walkway, protecting the people below from objects thrown by the settlers who live above.
The settlers have a "price tag" policy which states that any action they perceive as being "against" them from the Israeli army/authorities or anyone else, the settlers do something against the Palestinians around the settlements. The army, who is constantly around the settlers, is only interested in protecting the settlers, so the settlers go unpunished. In late 2008, the "House of Peace," a h0rribly named house illegally occupied by settlers, was taken over by the army, and the residents were evicted. So the settlers went crazy, and rioted through town (watch some youtube videos), burning tons (i'm not sure how many, at least 25) of cars, etc. https://www.ijn.com/ijn-news/israel/587-jew-vs-jew-violence-over-evacuation-of-peace-house-in-hebron
The leader of Kach, (not sure of their current name) lives in Tel Rumeida, too. His name is Noam Federman. His political party constantly changes their name, because Kach/Kahana Chai is officially a terrorist organization in the US, Israel, and the EU. He's protected by the Israeli army in Hebron.
Anyway, it was really interesting. The old city area is beautiful, and the Ibrahimi Mosque/Cave of the Patriarchs is amazing. (look up the 1994 massacre there) People were really nice, and food was really good and cheap.
2 days ago I crossed the Israel-Egypt border, and now I'm here in Dahab, a touristy town on Red Sea. I'm enrolled in a diving class, so I can finally get my certification. I plan on going to St. Catherine's monestary, climbing Mt. Sinai, going to Luxor, the pyramids, and Cairo in the next week. Kind of a lot packed into a little amount of time. Then, I'll fly to Istanbul. For now, though, I'm paying $3 a night (with my Brazilian roommate), eating good food, and taking it easy.