Nowhere left to go

Eid Abu Khamis

The spokesman for the nomadic Jahilin Bedouin community of Khan al-Ahmar, Eid Abu Khamis, is excited about his invitation from the  New York Peace Film Festival. On March 10 he will present the short documentary, "Nowhere left to go," about his community's battle against forced relocation to make way for expansion of Israeli settlements in the West Bank, which are contrary to international humanitarian law. You can see the film at www.jahalin.org. It will be his first visit to the United States.

Speaking to EAs and other foreign visitors today in his comfortable but smoky tent, he said this week settlers in vehicles had chased Jahalin boys who were herding animals on the adjacent hill.

We listened again to the community's story that Eid shared today, and one of his phrases really struck me: "This is the only place in the world where they want to move people next to a garbage dump."

Jahalin children entranced by storyteller

As part of a European Union project to develop the Bedouin children's creative thinking, a storyteller today at the "tire school" gave an animated rendering that fully engaged about a dozen of them.

The community is living with the threat of forced relocation in June, at the end of the school year.