From a Sabeel Conference to a Solidarity Pilgrimage
Dear friends,
It comes as no surprise that the situation in Palestine is horrendous and in a constant state of flux. Transportation into Israel and within Palestine is easily disrupted. The prospect of a widening regional war is prompting much uncertainty. All this has placed tremendous pressure on the Sabeel staff in East Jerusalem and on all Palestinians. Under these circumstances the Sabeel International Conference on Religious Extremism is not feasible as initially planned.
The International Friends of Sabeel planning committee met on October 1st to determine if the Sabeel pre-tour and International Conference on Religious Extremism, planned for November 11-21, was possible at this time, given the heightened tension in the region.
In making its decision, the committee considered both an update from the Executive Director of Sabeel as to the challenges presently experienced by our Palestinian sisters and brothers and the number of people registered for the conference. As we spoke with our partners, there was a strong consensus that it is more important and valuable to sit under an olive tree and hear directly from our Palestinians siblings, rather than sitting in lecture halls with coffee breaks.
With this in mind, and after an in-depth discussion, the planning team agreed NOT to cancel this event but to refocus it as a Solidarity Pilgrimage. The emphasis of the trip will be to meet with and listen to those who live daily with increased Israeli militarism.
The timeline will remain the same -- November 11-21 -- with maximum flexibility built into the timeline. The days will focus on meeting Palestinians and hearing their stories. Events will take place primarily in the Bethlehem and Jerusalem areas, with the possibility of limited travel to other locations such as Hebron and possibly Nablus. In the evening, participants will hear from some of the presenters who have agreed to attend.
All our delegations and programs have been reorganized to encourage and invite people to attend this Solidarity Pilgrimage. CFOS is also able to offer subsidies to certain participants. All who register should plan to travel on refundable tickets through Amman, Jordan. Sabeel will have a support team to assist with travel from Jordan to Palestine. Should you wish to register or inquire more information please contact our executive director, Rana Atie, at this email: executive-director@friendsofsabeel.ca
Though the situation is precarious, please know that such trips have been happening and are still ongoing as you can see in this recent article on the online magazine Mondoweiss. It profiles the August-September visit to sites in Israel and the West Bank by 30 members of the U.S. Interfaith Journey for Justice. This visit was facilitated by Sabeel. Since mid-August, Sabeel has led two faith delegations around the West Bank without incident. The article quotes Sabeel’s Omar Haramy:
“We want to encourage people to continue to bring groups here…No one is doing this but Sabeel. It is dangerous, but we can manage the safety for people. International presence is important. It empowers us on the ground and helps the Palestinian people escape the stereotypes [presented in the media]. We want to create a flow of groups to Palestine.”
See the entire article here.