Yanun

Yanun is a village in the North of the West Bank, near Nablus. It is a small village of 60 people from five extended families. Because the land around Yanun is extremely fertile, Yanun used to survive off farming and selling of its goods. In the past decade, Yanun has suffered from worsening attacks by Israeli settlers living in the area. In 2002, the entire village was forced to evacuate by Israeli settlers. After the forced evacuation, international observers realized the need for an international presence in Yanun, in order to bring back the villagers and protect them from increasing attacks. At this point, the Ecumenical Accompaniment Program in Palestine and Israel, a project of the World Council of Churches, established a station in Yanun of five internationals. After seeing the increased protection, villagers began to move back into the village. The population of 60 today, is only a small portion of the amount of people.

I recently went on a tour with EAPPI to visit Yanun. It was the first time I have been in this village. I have not spent much time in the north of the West Bank. The beauty of the surrounding area, made it hard to believe that this village is more frequently a place of violence from settlers than a place of peace and serenity.


The grass was incredibly long and green, because of the springtime weather. Olives used to be one of the main goods Yanun sold. These days, many of the olive trees are on lands that have been annexed to the settlement of Itimar. Only rarely can the men from Yanun tend to their trees, which has left them less fruitful in recent years.




The scenery around the village was beautiful. Unfortunately, most of the surrounding land is claimed as part of the municipal areas of the Itimar settlement. Each hill has a settlement outpost, manned each day. Because of these outposts, villagers can no longer use most of the land they used to use for farming. The mayor of Yanun told us that almost 90% of the land they used to use for farming, is now controlled by the settlers. For this reason, the villagers cannot grow enough to making money. They can only manage to grow enough to live on.






While we were in Yanun, there were no attacks by the settlers. It was hard to believe with the peaceful scenes that these events even occur. Frequently, however, settlers enter the village. They walk around with huge guns (I don't know gun types) in order to intimidate the villagers. Sometimes they will take a swim in the village well, or allow their dogs to drink out of it, which contaminates the water. The villagers must then empty the water, and buy new water to fill the well. In the past, settlers have even walked around the village sticking their guns in the windows of the houses. I can only imagine how frightening these actions must be for the villagers of the town.


EAPPI members told us about their work in the village. Children often play by their house, because they feel safer near the presence of internationals.


This is the village school. Children can go to the school until the age of 12, then they must go to high school in the nearby town of Aqraba. Some of the children then are able to go to University in Nablus. It is difficult for families to afford University, so often parents can only afford for the first child to attend University. It makes going to University more difficult and expensive, since the old road to Nablus is now closed, forcing the villagers to take a road that takes 1 hour, instead of 15 minutes to get to Nablus. Transportation to along this route, as well as living in Nablus, is an expensive cost now added to the cost of University.


The mayor of the village, spoke to us about the situation.






In true Palestinian style, the hospitality of the village was amazing. They served us tea, as well as lunch. All the food was made from ingredients grown in the village. It was incredibly delicious! I was also able to purchase olive oil, olives, roasted almonds, and zatar (a mixture of thyme and spices used frequently in Palestinian culture) from the villagers. They are some of the best tasting products I've ever tasted!

As is most things in this country, visiting Yanun was filled with mixed emotion. The beauty of the area was astounding, which makes the sadness of the deteriorating situation even more poignant. I find on days like this, I wish their was peace so that the beauty that is Palestinian culture and society could flourish.


The Ecumenical Accompaniment Programme in Palestine and Israel (EAPPI) brings internationals to the West Bank to experience life under occupation. Ecumenical Accompaniers (EAs) provide protective presence to vulnerable communities, monitor and report human rights abuses and support Palestinians and Israelis working together for peace. When they return home, EAs campaign for a just and peaceful resolution to the Israeli/Palestinian conflict through an end to the occupation, respect for international law and implementation of UN resolutions. For more visit their WEBSITE.
.