Before going further, I need to point out that getting into Israel as a human rights activist is not easy. Although Israel is a democracy and respects human rights more than many other countries, some of its policies violate the rights of millions of Palestinians, especially in the West Bank and Gaza. Human rights activists who come to observe the situation and try curb the violence are not welcome. Many have been arrested and deported at the airport trying to get in. We have to twist the truth, saying we come as tourists. We cannot reveal the true purpose of our trip. That was one of my concerns before my flight.
The plane from Toronto took off around 5:00 PM Canadian time. Immediately I found myself in good company. I was sitting with a few young adults my age and we soon got talking. Some of them are visiting friends in Israel, most others live there. I am neither Israeli or Jewish but it didn't matter. They included me in their circle and we talked all night. Alcohol was given out for free and some of us indulged a bit, some perhaps more than we should have. But it was a blast.
I met two young guys. They were flying in to Israel to serve in the Israeli army. In Israel every young adult is expected to serve and they were coming to do their bit. For obvious reasons I kept the true nature of my trip secret and talked about spending time in Israel. They were extremely friendly and offered me ideas of places to go and things to see.
I told them I will pray for them and that is true. I pray that they come back safe from their mandatory service. I pray that they will not engage in human rights abuses. I pray for both them and the Palestinian people they will be occupying. Who knows, I may actually run into them during my time in Palestine.
The picture below is of us together. The girl on the end is Lisa*, coming in to Israel to visit her friend.
Once we left the plane we walked through the hallways to the passport office. I was praying that I not be stopped. CPT sent us an email of what to expect and ideas of things to say. Let's say I forgot all that. I only had God. Which was a good thing and always is.
On the way up the stairs there were 2 security guards looking at the crowd. I saw them pull an Arab man aside and take him with them. I walked past some guards and was just smiling and saying "shalom shalom" whenever I noticed someone looking at me.
Passport control: the lady at the desk looked at me suspiciously and asked me what I was doing, telling me that 6 weeks is a very long time to stay as a tourist. I told her about the hostels I booked and offered to show her all the receipts. I did book these hostels and will have to cancel them soon. She said that was not necessary, just waved me through after stamping my passport. My bags were not even checked, and I was free to go! Praise God!
I thank God for having allowed me in. I wish I could have been more forthright about my trip but that would mean being deported and not being able to serve. I have felt God calling me to this area for over 10 years and I am finally there.
Me, Lisa, and the soldiers. We may or may not meet again in the West Bank.
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