by the International Center of Bethlehem © 2001
Faten
Finally, we are out from our “Sweet Home”. After 10 days of being enclosed in our apartment, my husband and I went out this morning. Actually, it was our choice not to go out from our apartment. We are living next to the Governor's house and the western entrance to the deluxe Inter-Continental Hotel, in the neighborhood between the two targeted refugees camps: Aida and Al-'Azze. Some Israeli snipers were located in the deluxe hotel, in a building about 50 meters away from our home, as well as in several other places. On the first “re-occupation” day, some snipers shot two of our neighbors at home; Moussa Abu-Eid, a nineteen year old relative, and Aysha Odeh, 39 years old, mother of 8. A few days later, a sniper at the Intercontinental killed Sliman Dibbes, father of 9, while he was sitting in his house, close to our neighborhood.
Faten
Nastas at work as Art Coordinator in the International Center of
Bethlehem,
30 October. The day before she returned to the office, but had forgotten
many things, even names, for example her computer password...
Hearing about all the snipers in our neighborhood; receiving bullets in the apartment above us, along our outside northern wall and in all of our water tanks; recognizing that there is almost no safe place in the Bethlehem District - not even in the square in front of Jesus' birth place - are the reasons which made us choose to enclose ourselves in our “Sweet Home", not even daring to look through the windows.
My husband and I think that this was the worst 10 days in our lives. It is worse than the previous Intifada, and worse than the escape from Kuwait, which my husband went through. However, we still think that thanks to God we were not directly hurt or shot in our “Sweet Home".
text: Faten Nastas,
photos: Marc Frings
webmaster: Andreas F. Kuntz