We were walking up the hill from Abu Dis when we saw a modest road block. Our Palestinian friend seemed completely
un-phased and only remarked on it when we asked him. He said that kids were
throwing stones over the wall and that we could watch if we wanted but that
soon the soldiers would come.
I tried to take a picture – a small child
was not the person I expected to voice displeasure at the camera; the fact
that even this child was so conscious of evidence and the dangers of the activity
made a big impression on me, as did his willingness to shout at a group of
foreign adults.
While the younger ones smoked and occasionally threw stones
that didn’t quite clear the wall, the “top boys” as we would call them had the honour
of executing the main spectacle, the ritual punishment of the wall. I could see the head and shoulders of three lads, a yellow
Fatah headband, a black hood and a red and white scarf. With a giant sledge
hammer they rhythmically battered the wall,
echoing like a solemn church bell as the faithful came out to observe the
service and cheer them on.
Cars and buses coming from Bethany that did not know about
the road block were turned away by the groups’ makeshift traffic conductor. Considering he wore overalls and a balaclava and held a knife, he could
hardly have done the job with any less aggression.
While Israeli soldiers massed behind the throbbing wall the
crew kept on bashing away but our friend gestured for us to leave… and off we
went.
It looked like fun…
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